Some Wild Behavior
by CheekyBrunette
Summary: Question: What happens when our favorite foursome in injected with animal DNA? Answer: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Humor, and a TON of awkward moments.
1. The Plan In Motion

**M-kay. So, there is officially a sci-fi. So there might be the occasional weird technology added into this whole deal. **

**Kelly and Gustavo are going to be… semi evil. I needed someone with motive, okay? And they'll still be themselves, just with dirty plans. MWAHAHA!**

**And don't worry. I will not deter the boys' hotness. Hopefully, I will add to it.**

"Is it ready?" Gustavo asked, growing impatient. He had been waiting too long for this. It needed to happen now, or never at all. Any later, and someone was bound to notice a difference in them when it was completed. Kelly nodded.

"Yep," she said excitedly, hugging her clipboard close to her chest. "Now all we have to do is wait." She smiled, expecting some kind of praise from her boss. She knew he had been holding out for this to happen.

"For what?" Gustavo yelled, frustrated. "This needs to happen now. Actually, this needed to happen three months ago!"

"I know, it's a hassle," she sympathized. "But we can't just bring them over hear and inject them with chemicals without questions being asked. Who knows, hopefully they'll hurt themselves soon!" Kelly explained, staying positive.

"Sure we can!" Gustavo cried. "Call them over, and tell them they need… immunization shots for their next tour!"

"Our next tour isn't for five months. It's standard to get them a week before, not half a year. Logan will see right through us. After all, he wants to be a doctor." She remained optimistic, "Besides, it's the boys. It defiantly won't be long before they all need a doctor." Kelly grinned wickedly. "Or, if you want, I can help that process along?" she offered. An evil smiled played on Gustavo's face.

"Well…" he sighed, feigning reluctance. "It _is_ for the fans." And evil laugh filled his office.

* * *

All four boys were lounging on their favorite chairs by the Palmwoods pool. They basked in the sun, soaking up rays and completely and utterly relaxed.

Well, except for James.

"Do you guys see this?" he shouted at his magazine. Back when they had first checked in, this would have drawn attention from the other residents. Now, they pretty much an accepted the boys' craziness. "I can't _believe_ that stupid llama get's front page _again_!" he complained, smacking the cover. His friends sighed. They had heard this speech at _least_ six times since leaving the house that afternoon. That didn't even _include _the morning.

"James," Kendall groaned, taking of his sunglasses and looking at him straight on. "Everyone knows the two things the public loves are Hollywood break ups, and," he paused to hold up another copy of TeenBop Magazine, "cute animals."

"Agh! Put it down, it's taunting me!" James shrieked. His friends smacked their foreheads in defeat.

"Let's go swimming," Carlos suggested, willing to do anything to get away from "the evil were-llama from heck." All three boys immediately agreed, also done with llamas, and jumped in the empty pool. It was the perfect opportunity.

Kelly slipped an ID mask over her face. Within three seconds, her face pixilated into a man's. Her body was replaced with a guy's figure wearing a traffic-cone orange vest over an expensive suit. She stuck on a hard hat and approached the pool.

"Aw, for the love of- Didn't I say for no one to get in this pool?" she, err, _he_ asked in annoyance, voice deep and masculine. She pulled a roll of caution tape from the inside pocket of the suit and strung it around the perimeter. "Sorry kids, it looks like I'm gonna have to give you all shots."

"Wait a minute, why?" Logan asked, trying to lift himself out of the pool, but "Kelly" pushed him back in.

"Found some weird algae growth at the bottom while inspecting this morning," she explained quickly, not being specific. If there's one thing Kelly learned about lying in all her years in her business, it was to never give details. At the scared looks on their faces she continued. "Relax, someone just hasn't put the proper amount of chlorine in the pool for a while," she explained, throwing a dirty look a Mr. Bitters, was hiding behind a book at his desk, for good measure. "I just need to give you all a little shot in case you in hailed any spores in the water that could get into your blood system." She was met with four nods.

It wasn't long before each boy had gotten their shots. "Kelly" left instructions on Bitters' desk to drain the pool and headed out the door, slipping off her ID mask. Lost in a crowd, she morphed back into her normal appearance, a small smile playing on her lips.

Gustavo was gonna be happy.

**Every time I'm sick, my mom attempts to make me do chores. WHY? Like, do it when I actually FEEL well. And every five seconds she goes, "are you sick?" It's like, no, I'm just puking my guts up for fun. Ugh. But she loves me, and I love her. After all, she is my Mami, she's gonna annoy me at times. I just wish it wasn't right now.**

**NEXT CHAPTER! Animal signs begin to show up. **


	2. Some Questionable Behavior

**Guys, I forget sometimes why I love BTR so much. I was just watching Big Time Mansion. I love them so hard all over. They do all these clichés, but it's them, so it's funny, and hysterical, and wonderful, and awesome. I want them so bad, I could cry, sometimes. **

**CHEEKY BRUNETTE IS HORRIBLY CRANKY! She spent ALL day at school perfecting a one shot, and I forgot it at SCHOOL! GRRRR! Ugh, just wait until tomorrow to read it I guess.**

**Dude, Esposito from Castle reminds me of Carlos by, like, A LOT. (sometimes though, I'm all "Ryan is Logan, Castle is Kendall, so James must be Beckett!")**

Oddly, Logan was the first one to cave into his new instincts.

He was laying on his bed in the room he and Carlos shared, doing all the guys' math homework and subconsciously licking the back of his hand. He stared intently at his calculator as he absentmindedly lapped at his fingers.

"Hey…" Carlos started, about to ask him about if he'd go down to the pool to skate board, but trailed off when he saw Logan, "man? Uh, Logie? What are you doing?" Logan glared up at him over his text book, knowing exactly what Carlos wanted him to do.

"_Your _math homework, so don't try to tempt me in to doing anything 'fun' with you," he said between licks. Carlos put his hands up in mock defeat.

"Whatever! But, I meant… what are you doing with your _hand_?" Logan looked at him funny, tongue now gliding up and down his forearm.

"Nothing," he said, oblivious to his weird behavior. Carlos shrugged.

"Alright," he said, snagging his helmet off his messy dresser and securing it onto his head. He hooked his skate board under his arm. "I'm going to go roll around in the empty pool," he informed him, and then left awkwardly as Logan nearly fell off his bed as he attempted to lick his elbow.

* * *

James was next.

He was sitting in a chair in the lobby with the new girl, Elise, and sipping his and hers smoothies. He had the pink one, of course, since all four boys new blue raspberry was gross. He flipped his bangs out of his eyes.

"Your hair is so…" Elise searched for the right words. "Flawless," she completed and reached out to touch it. James batted her hand away, uttering a high pitched, whiny, wimper-like-

"Did you just… neigh?" she asked, furrowing her eyebrows together. James looked at her like she was crazy.

"Nay!" he said, giggling at his "punny-ness", but stopped at the lost look on her face. "I mean," he tried again, clearing his throat, "I don't think so."

"Good," Elise smiled. "Now where were we?" She went for his hair, but he pulled away and neighed again. He slapped a hand over his mouth in shock. Elise crinkled her nose.

"You're weird," she said bluntly, and left, a shocked James in her wake.

* * *

Third was Carlos.

He had just gotten back from being kicked out of the pool, and he was going down the slide. He reached the bottom, and instinct took over. He started rubbing his back with his wrists, and was still doing it as James walked through the door. Kendall was playing video games on the couch, but, at this point, he was used to his friend's weird behavior and didn't even look up.

James, however, watched with interest as Carlos did a handstand rubbing his back on the slide, gripping the top of it with his toes. When he was done, he plopped back on his feet and smiled up at _his _slide.

"Uh, Carlos?" James interrupted his happy thoughts. "What was that for?"

"The slide is now mine," he said simply and walked off. James laughed.

"And I thought I was acting weird today."

* * *

Not surprisingly, Kendall was last to break. Even his _subconscious_ was stubborn.

He was still playing video games, but now Logan and Carlos were playing with him. James was off taking a bubble bath or something.

"Guys, I feel weird," Kendall frowned, putting a hand over his chest. Somehow, he was able to feel his loosing genetic battle, and it was putting him off. Logan looked at him with worried eyes, and he immediately scooted over to rest a hand on his forehead.

"You don't feel warm, does something hurt?" he asked, lurching into doctor mode. Kendall pushed his hand away.

"I don't feel sick," he explained, "just weird." He brought a foot up and scratched at his ear unnaturally. Carlos and Logan backed away. "What are you guys looking at?" Kendall asked, confused. His friends opened their mouths to speak, but, then, an ear splitting shriek from the bathroom sent them running.

**Dear Carlos,**

** Why am I so attracted to Latinos? It needs to stop.**

**Love Cheeky Brunette**

**I STINKING LOVE KNOWING ALL THE WORDS TO ALL THEIR SONGS BEFORE THEY'RE ON TV! I SO ROCK!**

"**Bigfoot's on the campground, repeat, Bigfoot's on the CAMPGROUND!" Tehe, my boys are silly. I specifically love when there's an awkward pause or something, and they're each doing something equally awkward. Like, in Big Time Beach Party, when the guy suggests a dance off, Logan does this little "what?" move and it's so funny. Makes the thing. Or they give each other little nods.**

**EXTRA TRILLION POINTS TO WHOEVER NOT-ON-TWITTER PEOPLE CAN GUESS WHAT CARLOS IS!**


	3. New Parts?

The boys were at the bathroom in seconds. "James, let us in!" Kendall ordered, banging on the locked door.

"NO!" James refused, his voice muffled reply.

"Stand back," Carlos instructed, taking a few steps back for a running start and pulling his helmet from nowhere, slapping onto his head. Logan and Kendall slipped out of the way; Carlos licked his lips in anticipation. He screamed and ran at the door, busting it off its hinges. Logan and Kendall's eyes traced the shattered door frame. Logan poked at the splintered wood.

"Nice work, Carlos," he commended. The Latino smiled proudly. The boys refocused their attention on James, who had covered himself with the shower curtain.

"James, we can see you," Kendall said with an eye roll.

"No you can't!" James shouted from under the curtain. Kendall crossed his arms.

"James, it's _clear_," he responded, exasperated. James shook his head in denial. The taller boy was crouched, in his towel on the floor of the tub. His knees were pulled up over his chest with his back against the wall. He was a little blurry because due to the streaky plastic of the shower curtain.

Logan tapped his foot impatiently, but his tone was as calm and understanding as ever. "James, please come out from under there," he bent over, getting on eye level with him. James met his eyes hesitantly. "We can't help you if we don't know what's wrong," he reasoned.

"Yeah, come on out, Buddy," Carlos encouraged before turning back to the rubber ducks he was battling. James gulped and shrugged the shower curtain off and stood up, wincing at his friends' shocked expressions. Kendall gulped. "Oh…" was all he could say.

The guys had been expecting a hair mount function or a zit, but they had been completely wrong. Running through James tanned skin were lighter-colored stripes, covering his torso. They cut through his back and chest, wrapping around his sides. "Dude! You're like a tiger!" Carlos exclaimed, excited and completely forgetting about his duck fight. James blushed, putting his arms up awkwardly in front of him, trying to cover his new print. Logan went up to examine him. He leaned away, but let him look. If anyone would be able to tell what's wrong with him, it would be Logan.

"I've never heard of anything like this," he said timidly, and then caught his friends all staring at him. "What?" he asked.

"Your head," Kendall answered, after a moment of stunned silence. Logan rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

"Does my hair look bad or something?" he questioned, looking extremely uncomfortable. Kendall shook his head.

"Uh… you might want to look in the mirror." Logan looked at him screwy and walked over to the sink to check himself out. With one glance, he staggered back and reached up to feel his new features.

His jaw hung open, and his forehead creased in distress. Sticking up from his head were a pair of black cat ears. Despite his horror, he wiggled them experimentally, and flattened them down against his head, making them almost invisible. If they hadn't known, they wouldn't have guessed. He lifted them back up and stared, terrified, at his reflection.

"Hey," James said, immediately taking pity on him. "I know it's crazy, but-" he cut off. He had attempted to rest a comforting hand on his shoulder, but Logan cringed away. The shorter boy looked down at his toes, ashamed. He couldn't stand the hurt look in James's eyes.

"I-I have to go," he stammered, and rushed out of the room. The boys heard the apartment door open and close a few seconds later.

"Carlos, are you tired?" Kendall asked the shorter boy, and he shook his head.

"No, why?" he asked, confused.

"Cause I think Logan and James weren't the only ones to get 'new additions' today," he explained. Carlos looked into the mirror to find dark rings circling his eyes. Despite being sounding suppressing, they actually made his big brown puppy-dog eyes even bigger and browner than before.

"Woah," he said and turned back to Kendall and laughed. "Haha, you have ears, too!" Kendall felt his head and smiled. James tossed him his hand mirror, and he held it up, checking out his sandy blond ears that blended seamlessly into his hair, just like Logan's, but his were smaller.

"Well, guys. I'm guessing this isn't exactly normal, but I'm sure we'll manage," he said, giving them a mini pep-talk. Carlos beamed back, but James only offered a half smile, fingering one of his stripes.

Up in the air ducts, Kelly slammed her fist into her hand. This was _not_ how things were supposed to go, and Gustavo was going to be mad.

**For some reason, this was hard to write… okay. I refuse to update this until two chapters of Aftermath, one of Back In The Days, and a one shot I wrote are updated. So in like… two days maybe? Okay. GO TEAM!**

**OH MY GOSH! While I have your attention. My sis, SassyBlonde, I was all "let's watch BTBP!" cause she hasn't seen it yet, and she was all, "I'm not in the mood." I was like, WHAT? WRONG! Ugh, how is one NOT in the mood for my babies? I could die.**

**I really don't like this chapter. It's boring, and I didn't use enough Kendall. Plus, it feels sort of choppy.**


	4. Conflict and Tails

**WOOT! I've FINALLY figured out what I want to do with this chapter. It's taken me nine years to get out of this writers block rut. SO YAY!**

"_I'm not telling you they're 'part animal'," Kelly explained, exasperated. "I'm saying they have animal _parts_!" She clenched her fists in frustration, threatening to snap the thin, blue, plastic clipboard in her hand. _

"_What do you mean 'parts'?" Gustavo asked, searching for clarification. Kelly rolled her eyes and counted on her fingers._

"_Strips, ringed eyes, ears, I think I saw a tail hanging out from under James's towel-"_

"_Wait," Gustavo interrupted her. "Tails?" She nodded her head, and he massaged his temples, trying to relieve himself of his newfound stress headache. He glared at her. "Do they know?"_

"_Well, it's only a matter of time before one of them figures out _someone _messed with their genetic structure, but I doubt they'd be able to figure out it's us," she reasoned, but Gustavo still looked angry._

"_How did you mess this up?" he wailed, frustrated._

"_How did _I_ mess this up?" she scoffed, "You're the one who just couldn't wait to get it over with. If _you_ would have allowed them more time to test it, this could have been prevented. And besides, you knew that we didn't know what to expect going into this!"_

"_Just… go," he growled, on the verge of boiling over. _

"_What do you want me to do?" she snapped. Gustavo gave her an 'are you really that stupid' look._

"_What do you _think_ I want you to do? Go _FIX IT_!" he yelled, and she blew out of his office as fast as possible. There was absolutely _no_ being with Gustavo when he was mad like this. She closed the door behind her and headed off to the lab._

* * *

Kendall found Logan staring at the screen of his laptop, unblinking, on the roof a few hours later. His back was turned to him, so he didn't see him come up. His ears caught in the wind and a long, thin, black tail flicked about behind him. Kendall nearly gagged in shock at Logan's new… addition, and quickly looked down to find a furrier, shorter tail stemming out from behind him. He gulped.

Kendall walked over to the shorter boy, who never took his gaze off his laptop, taking a seat and leaning up against the ledge that separated them from the seemingly infinite drop to the ground. "So this is new," he said, flicking his tail between his fingers.

Logan didn't respond.

"Hey, buddy," he said, shaking his shoulder, trying to get his attention. Logan shook his head, forehead creased in worry and looking completely lost.

"Kendall," he creaked, "no one's _ever_ heard of _anything_ like this." He looked horrified. "Or, at least, has recorded it anyway, but I've been on medical chat rooms… No one knows what's wrong with us," he choked, scared. Kendall held Logan's head to his chest as the smaller boy stifled sobs. Logan was used to being able to figure out and solve every problem, and it didn't take much to understand that when he couldn't, it terrified him.

Truthfully, Kendall was pretty scared, too. An extra set of ears and a tail weren't exactly on his wish list when he woke up that morning. And, apparently, what they had was new, which meant there wasn't cure.

"It's okay, Logie," he said, using Logan's nickname to calm him down.

"But what if it's not?"

And that's when things got wild.

Logan looked up at him with fear-filled eyes, and Kendall took a sharp intake of breath, startled. Sensing the other boy's panic, he pulled away. "What's wrong?" he asked, seeing the worry in Kendall's face despite the dark night spilling around them.

"Your-your eyes," Kendall managed to sputter out, fumbling with his phone, and shoving the reflective surface in Logan's face. The smaller boy snatched it from his hands and held it away from him to get a good look and gasped. He was up in a flash, making a run for the apartment. He scattered through the kitchen in seconds and raced into the bathroom, staring, horrified, at his reflection in the mirror. He couldn't breathe.

Logan's pupils were slits, their round shaped replaced with an oblong shape. His irises were as black as night, contrasting against the now yellow white of his eye. He put a hand over his open mouth and resisted a squeal. Kendall walked in the room flipping on the lights.

"Hey, man, sorry for flipping out, are you oka-a- Hey! You're okay!" he said brightly, noticing his now human eyes. Logan raised an eyebrow and checked his normality in the mirror, something he was sick of having to do, and furrowed his brow in confusion.

"Kendall, move aside, for a second, would you?" Kendall complied as James and Carlos entered the bathroom. Logan flipped off the light and gasped as he watched his brown eyes switch to those of a cat. A squeak from Carlos made him turn to see him staring into his now _huge_ orange irises with near pinprick pupils.

Logan flicked the light on and off, watching their eyes change from a human's to an animal's.

James was the one to break the stunned silence. "Well… nice new stuff guys. Me and Carlitos here also gained some rocking tails," he said, pointing to his thin one with a tuft at the end, and Carlos's bushy striped one. Kendall smiled, bearing sharp incisors.

"You're a zebra?" he asked, trying to keep the laugh out of his voice. James frowned.

"Yeah, so? Carlos is, like, a raccoon or something, Logan's a kitty, and you're… just weird. At least I _know_ what _I _am!" he said, voice high and flustered. Kendall snickered at his distress and James started wrestling him, but Logan's voice interjected.

"You're right, James. Let's go find out what we are," he suggested, but Kendall and Carlos were already out the door, fighting over his laptop. James crossed his arms over his chest.

"This better be good," he threatened, following Logan to break up the fight and get some answers.

"**The now yellow white of his eye" sorry if that was an awkward sentence. I looked up what the white of your eye was called, and, for the record, it's sclera, and I figured THAT wouldn't exactly go over well. Sorry if the use of the word oblong was wrong. I used it, and then I was all uncertain, so I checked it, and the definition was weird… so yeah.**

**Sort of lame ending… but aren't you PSYCHED to figure out what the rest of our boys are? I know I am! Figure out what Carlos or Kendall is (Carlos is easier **_**now**_** and Kendall's is one of those animals that every zoo has regardless of size and has a relative pretty much in every home ever. There's a hint) Logan's sort of a duh. James **_**said **_**it after all.**


	5. What Am I?

**I am here with a raw determination to write SOMETHING, but it's taking me forever to write a stupid AN. GRRRRRRRRRRRR! I hate writers block. But whatever, I'm diving in.**

So, surprisingly, there wasn't exactly a website to figure out what kind of animals they had morphed into. At least James's was obvious. Logan typed 'zebra' into Wikipedia's search bar and quickly scanned the article, laughing as he read.

"What's so funny?" James asked, flustered. Logan giggled, ears wiggling.

"Zebras are just like you!" James looked at him skeptically.

"Oh yeah? How?" he challenged defensively, crossing his arms over his puffed up chest. He glowered down at Logan, trying to look intimidating, but his actions went unnoticed by Logan, who was staring at the glowing screen of his computer, smiling.

"Well first of all, each male zebra doesn't have just _one_ mate, they have, like, six, who just flock him constantly." Carlos and Kendall snickered. James always had at _least _four girls on his arm. "Second," Logan continued, "they're sociable and hang out in groups, but they like to have their solo moments. That's like you cause even though you're in a band with us, you still like to be _alone_ in the spotlight, and third, zebras are pretty animals, and you would be lying if you said you weren't pretty."

James frowned, but mumbled, "yeah, I guess I'm pretty." He leaned back in his chair grumpily. He wanted to be compared to models, not zebras.

"What am I?" Carlos asked, poking Logan in the side. The raven haired boy jumped, hair standing on end and ears straight up, while Carlos made a chattering noise versus his usual laugh. Logan hissed in distaste. Carlos smirked. Luckily, Kendall was there to knock them out of it before they went at each other, biting and clawing

"Seriously, how do we find out what we are?" he asked, interrupting their mini-fight. Logan bit his lip in thought, and then his eyes lit up as he got an idea.

Logan's fingers flew as he went to Google images. His friends looked at him cross-eyes as he typed in "black and white striped tail" and searched. Amongst weird pictures of a striped pillow with a cupcake holding skunk, there were a bunch of photos of ring-tailed lemurs. James leaned over and pointed at one of the pictures.

"Make that one bigger," he instructed, and Logan complied. "Look," he said, gesturing to one of the lemur's eyes. "They look just like Carlos's did when the lights were off." Carlos squinted at them.

"Let me see," he whined, pushing Logan and James over. His eyes widened. "They do!" he exclaimed, excitedly, "And look! They have rings around their eyes like me!" Logan nodded.

"That would make sense. Lemurs are fun loving, and you're both practically acrobats. Not to mention, lemurs are passed off to be stupid when they're actually incredibly intelligent." Carlos grinned in pride. It wasn't often he was called smart.

"I guess this means you're a lemur," Kendall shrugged, and then shifted his focus. "Now how do we find out what I am?" Logan returned to Google's homepage and thought. His three friends joined him, struggling to find a solution.

"Well," Logan said slowly, "your teeth are enough to tell you're a carnivore." James scoffed.

"Great, Logan. That narrowed down our search," he said, voice dripping with sarcasm. He was still sort of miffed after being compared to a zebra. He subconsciously traced a stripe on his stomach with his finger. Suddenly, Carlos straightened up.

"What about earlier? Before James squealed, you did that thing with your foot," he said speaking to Kendall. The blonde's eyebrows knit together.

"What do you mean?" he asked, scratching his ear with his foot. Carlos nearly flipped.

"That! That right there! Logan, what does that?" he asked the smart one of the group. Logan looked flustered.

"Um, a dog?" he answered, phrasing it more like a question. "Okay, so he's a dog with pointy ears, very sharp teeth, and a longish, shaggy tail. What's that?" Kendall thought.

"A Huskie?" he guessed. Logan's brain sparked.

"Kendall, can I see your back?" In response to the weird look Kendall was giving him, Logan quickly said, "I have a hunch." Kendall shrugged and lifted up his shirt, revealing a dark, tanned stripe of skin. "You're a wolf," Logan determined.

"How can you tell?" James asked, lost.

"He has an alpha male stripe. The leader of a pack of wolves is called the 'alpha', and they sometimes have a stripe running down their backs," Logan answered, and James nodded. Carlos laughed.

"I guess we really are 'dogs' now. Gustavo's gonna _flip_!" Kendall facepalmed.

"Ugh, he's going to kill us for this!" the blonde whined. He growled, ears flattening in annoyance. "Sometime I could wring that guy's neck," he snapped, thinking of all the times Gustavo had yelled at them in the past. James shrugged.

"So long as you don't bite him, man, it's all good with me." The other three laughed, and suddenly everyone's attention went to Logan.

"So what are you?" Kendall asked, curious. Logan shrugged. "Well are you going to find out?" The shorter boy sighed.

"Well, I'm clearly part cat," he started, gesturing to his tail and ears, "And I'd figure I'm domestic cause my teeth aren't as sharp as yours." This earned nods from his friends.

After a moment of silence, Carlos piped up, "So now what?" Kendall looked at the clock.

"We get ready to go to the studio." The boys looked at him in shock.

"Is it really that late?" Kendall nodded, they had to be at Roque Records in an hour and a half. He was going to need coffee, and a lot of it, especially if he was going to deal with Gustavo yelling at them for going beast overnight. It was going to be a long day.

**Uf. Sorry if this stinks, but it took me a good couple hours to write. WRITERS BLOCK!**

**Dude, I tested the whole Google thing and stuff, so relax. I do my homework.**


	6. Yeah, I did it

**I've been writing in a smaller font recently, in hopes that it will make my writing meatier. It feels like it's been sort of scarce lately, so… yep!**

The boys were at an impasse. They had gotten ready to go to Roque Records, but just as they were about to leave the apartment, they realized something. "Guys, I think we have a problem," Kendall realized, hand on the door knob. His friends looked at him quizzically.

"What do you mean?" James asked, giving his hair a little flip in confusion. Kendall twirled James's tail in his fingers and scratched his new set of ears. And James looked at him, eyes widened. Logan's tail flicked in the air, which seemed to be a constant with him, and he smushed down his big black kitty ears uncomfortably.

"So what do we do?" Logan asked, figuring like Kendall that they couldn't exactly go out like this. Kendall scratched his chin in though.

"Well… Logan!" he barked, "You go put on a hoodie and keep your ears flat. Then stuff your tail into your pant leg. Carlos! You go borrow my mom's make up to lighten up your eyes and do the same with your tail."

"What about me, Kendall?" James asked, standing at attention, ready for his instructions.

"Wear a long sleeved shirt to cover up your stripes and follow Logan and Carlos's lead on the tail thingy," he ordered. The boys dispersed and within minutes were standing back at the front door, looking completely human. Kendall had done the same thing Logan had to cover up his wild side, but plus a beanie, minus a hood, and was ready to hit the lobby. They hopped in the elevator, and each boys' breath caught as the doors opened.

They slinked out of the elevator, heads down and slouching past Bitter's desk and the pool. They almost made it without getting stopped. Of course, Jo just had to pop in and stop them. "Kendall!" she called as they were halfway through the doors. All for boys winced, turning around. "Do you wanna hang out later? I get off from shooting early!" she said, excited. Kendall squirmed anxiously, feeling ironically like a wild animal trapped in a cage.

"Sorry, I'm sort of busy," he said, feigning disappointment. She looked at him cross eyed.

"But aren't you usually the one who gets off early today?" she asked, confused. Kendall panicked.

"Nope, you are! Oh, look at the time, gotta go. Catch ya later, love ya!" He spoke quickly, ending his tyrant with a kiss on the cheek. Jo watched as the four boys of Big Time Rush ran from the Palmwoods, wiping saliva from her cheeks. Something was clearly going on with the guys. The question was what?

"See?" spoke Carlos, "This is why I'm single." Kendall scoffed. They hopped in a taxi and headed of to Roque Records, listing the various torture methods Gustavo was surely to use on them when he found out what had happened.

Soon they arrived and tumbled out of the car, tripping over each other in a big confusing pile of clumsiness, which wasn't unusual for the boys. They were all laying on the street after falling from the taxi when Freight Train picked them all up, slinging them over his shoulder and carrying all four of them in and into Gustavo's office. He dropped them in some chairs and left. They flinched at Gustavo's already angry face.

"Boys," he snapped, sending a desperate look at Kelly who shook her head. He sighed. "I have something to tell you." Carlos pushed up on the arms of his chair, crossing his legs beneath him.

"What do you mean?" he asked, glaring at him. Logan smacked his arm, snapping him out of his craziness a little. Kendall jumped in.

"Actually, Gustavo, _we_ have something to tell _you._" Gustavo snarled.

"Yeah, I'm sure you do," he said, not sounding sarcastic at all, which snagged the boys' attention. The grumpy man crossed his arms, mad about what he was about to say. "Look, I injected you with animal DNA," he said bluntly, being anti-climactic as usual. He wasn't exactly one to care about build up, he just wanted to get things over with. At the horrified, unnerved looks on the boys' faced, he continued. "You weren't supposed to sprout wings and hooves or whatever you guys have," he said with an eye roll. "You were just supposed to get their instincts." He was still met with appalled faces.

"_Why_?" James asked, completely lost, but he wasn't the only one. Gustavo squirmed uncomfortably in his chair.

"You remember how the public loves two things?" The guys nodded their heads.

"Yeah," Kendall answered, "They like celebrity break ups and-" his eyes widened in realization. He facepalmed. "Cute animals!" he exclaimed, understanding everything. "So you thought if we were like cute animals then maybe the public would like us more?" Gustavo grunted a yes.

"Wait," Logan said, taking off his hood and letting his ears out, "So you did this?"

"Unintentionally, yes," Kelly informed him, trying to make things clear. James nearly flew out of his seat in excitement.

"So you can undo this right? We can be normal?" Gustavo and Kelly painted pained expressions on their faces. The boys were _not_ going to be happy with this.

"Not exactly…" Gustavo trailed off, not wanting to admit that when his lab workers found out about the disastrous results of their project they had up and split within five minutes with all their data. Gustavo had known they had all been shady, he didn't know they were illegal Bolivian scientists who had somehow crept into America across the Mexican border. "We're working on the cure right now," he lied, ignoring the disapproving look from Kelly. What was with her sudden urge to be honest recently?

"But we _will_ get cured?" Logan checked. Gustavo and Kelly both nodded reluctantly.

"Just go do whatever you dogs, err," Gustavo frowned, "_things_ do when you have free time. Me and Kelly have work to do." The boys nodded and headed off, not sure what to do with themselves. As so as they were gone, Gustavo through a little black book to Kelly.

"What's this?" she asked, catching it.

"A list of people to help us out with our 'problem'," Gustavo answered. "Start making calls." Kelly groaned but began phoning people immediately. It would probably be best if the boys _didn't_ have animal parts for their next concert. Or for anything, for that matter.

**Okay, so "CheekyBrunette, that sort of spoiled all plot for this book." WELL WRONG! Let's just say our new scientists won't be so nice. But before that, I plan for some just animal cuteness all over the place. BE EXCITED!**


	7. Awkward Moments

**CheekyBrunette is on a ROLL today! Not only have I updated BIDs TWICE, and now this, but I also have planned out this ENTIRE book, and the rest of Aftermath, expect an update soon if not tonight, and a new one shot! YAY!**

The boys went back to 2J, and James, Carlos, and Logan plopped down on the couch, game controllers in hand. Logan rested his head and Carlos's lap. When the Latino started petting him, he arched his back, rolling under his touch. Logan started purring, shutting up his eyes in joy. Carlos giggled, and gave him a scratch behind his cat ears, laughing as his almost whimper-like sound grew louder, begging him for more. Kendall bit his lip and stood in front of the TV screen, wanting to address them before they got too into their game.

"Yo, man, what's up?" James asked, a mouthful of pie that had probably been sitting out for two days. Kendall puffed up his chest in preparation for his latest speech. As a leader, he liked to make decisions, and this was one he wanted to inform his friends on.

"Guys, I want us to act as normal as possible," he declared, and was met with three questioning looks. Carlos waved a controller in the air, giving Kendall a look.

"Isn't playing video games normal?" he asked. Kendall hesitated and gave a nod. Carlos smiled, and he leaned back against the bright orange cushions, Logan batting his stomach for more scratching, and the Latino obliged willingly. "Great, but that's sort of hard to do when you're in the way." Kendall sighed.

"I mean, we should go out, and act normal. We've been inside for, like, ever, and I don't want anyone to think anything's up," Kendall explained. And James looked at him, lost.

"But something _is_ up!" he yelped, gesturing wildly to the stripes hidden under his shirt. Kendall bared his teeth subconsciously, but then closed his lips when he realized how insane that probably seemed.

"Yeah, but we shouldn't let _other_ people know that!" he exclaimed, and smirked when he was met with three understanding nods. "Just don't tan, wear shorts, and try not to act… animal," he finished, then frowned. "No pun intended." He watched as his friends dropped their controllers and leave the apartment. He stood there feeling satisfied.

That's when his eyes fell on the dome hockey table. Absent mindedly, he walked over. Then, without thinking, he dropped his fly, peeing all over the edge of the table, leg lifted up, though that wasn't exactly necessary. Mrs. Knight chose that moment to walk in with a bag of groceries, which she dropped when she caught a look of her son. "Kendall Knight, what are you DOING?" she squealed, shocked. He looked up at her, eyes wide with fear. Backing away slowly, he zippered his pants.

"Oh, um, we're doing a school project about how animals mark their territory," he moved around her, flustered, "and dogs do it by, yeah. LATER!" he yelled and ran off down the hallway. Mrs. Knight groaned at her son's antics and left for a mop.

Sometimes, she just didn't know what to do with those boys.

* * *

James kicked back at the pool, happy when a new girl took a lounge chair next to him. "HI!" he chirped, and within minutes the two were on the verge of kissing. She had her lips poised, as did James, and they were leaning together when instinct took over. James tilted his neck and moved in so it was touching hers. He started rubbing the together by moving his head up and down, when she pushed him away.

"What was _that_?" she asked, while James looked down at himself, confused. He snorted, which she mistook for a sniff. "Oh, I'm sorry, are you okay?" she asked, thinking he was crying. He looked up at her and blew his lips like a horse.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered with an eye roll and a grin. She looked at him, furrowing her brown.

"Yep, okay, you're weird," and with that, she walked off. James called after her.

"What was your name again?"

* * *

Logan and Carlos were walking through the park, when they saw a skate board underneath one of the benches. Carlos jumped up and down, clinging to Logan's arm and drawing attention. "That's my skateboard!" he shrieked, excited. Logan threw him off, and crossed his arms.

"Nuh-uh! That's _my_ skate board, which _you_ lost! I've been looking for that for ages!" Carlos raised an eyebrow and put his hands on his hips as a crowd started to form around the two fighting boys. He hissed at Logan, clearly annoyed.

"As if! You _gave_ that to me!" At Logan's incredulous expression, he continued, "Remember? I said, 'Can I borrow your skate board, and you said, "You can have it'!" he exclaimed. Logan rolled his eyes, frustrated, and let out a hiss of his own.

"I didn't mean forever!" he said, balling his fists. The Palm Woods guests began to chant for a fight while they faced off. Within seconds they were hitting each other, but not in the way you'd expect. Sure, to a lemur or a cat, it would be an all out brawl. To a bunch of people, it was more like a sissy slap fight. The two boys batted at each other, throwing in the occasional scratch, as the crowd dispersed, all feeling a little awkward and weirded out by the entire ordeal.

The two pulled away, panting. "Yo, man. Sorry for the misunderstanding," Carlos apologized.

"It's no big deal," Logan said with a shrug as they gasped for breath. I think this whole "territorial" thing is getting to us though, you know?" Carlos nodded. "From now on, we're a pack. It's all _ours_ okay?" Carlos agreed. The two separated , and Carlos met up with James at the pool.

"Yo, dude. When'd you get the yellowish highlights?" he asked. James frowned up at him and pulled out a mirror, he always had one on his person, and checked out his reflection. He gasped at the gold streaks running though out his brown hair. They caught the light, but definitely added to the whole "zebra" thing he had going on lately.

"They're new," he answered as Carlos sprawled out on the empty chair beside him, roasting his stomach in the sun. "Uhhh… what's up with that?" he asked the shirtless Carlos. The Latino shrugged.

"Why didn't you tell me how great tanning was, James? The sun feels _so good_!" James leaned away from his officially mentally insane friend and looked up just in time to see a girl with a zebra strip bag walk by. He snarled at her, and she rushed away, hiding from him behind her hat.

* * *

After a _long_ day of fighting off some more "wild" behavior, the guys went back to 2J to get some sleep. Logan had avoided the pool and all other water sources the whole day, James kept snorting and making other weird noises, Carlos pretty much tanned the whole afternoon and was now at least three shades darker, and Kendall had hung out with Jo, not able to resist jiggling his leg every time she touched him. He could feel his tail wag back and forth.

They were all relatively exhausted from not sleeping the night before, and crashed in their beds immediately. All except for Kendall were asleep at nine, shockingly.

The blonde circled his pack, subconsciously sniffing the air for predators, eyes like a hawk. Once he was sure they were all safe, he curled up in his bed, ready to sleep for at _least_ eight hours.

* * *

"_So you'll do it?" Gustavo asked over the phone, voice low despite no one else being around. He rubbed his leg nervously. He needed the answer as a yes. If the dogs stayed part animal like this, he could be in a bunch of trouble. Law suits, then jail, then death sentences… Yeah. He was pretty sure the punishment for genetic mutilation would be execution. Of course, no one had ever been proven guilty of it before, so he wasn't positive._

_He pulled on the chord of the phone, biting his lip, anxiously awaiting his answer._

"_Yes," came the gruff reply, and Gustavo suddenly breathed again._

"_Thank you, you have _no_ idea how much this means to me!" he responded, thrilled about his new scientist. "Now, about your fee-" He was interrupted by a clicking noise on the other side of the line._

"_Relax. It'll work itself out in time." Gustavo smiled, hanging up the phone. He heard what he had needed to, but he hadn't heard the maniacal laughter that came afterwards. Little did Gustavo know how over his head he was._

**Okay, I was gonna do more awkward moments, but I have TORTURE planned. So I'll do some next chapter, and then I'm probably going to traumatize them all for life. YAY! I just… I need angst or obscene cuteness or I get bored.**


	8. Shockingly, Life Is Still Weird

**Halla! Okay, so CheekyBrunette is still in a creative mood with no homework (Just youth group tonight!) SO HERE COMES UPDATING! I don't know if I want to just finish Aftermath or not… hm… We'll see how this goes…**

Carlos plopped down in a chair by a groggy James. The taller boy was still drowsy, having just woken up, and had his hand out, waiting for Logan to put his coffee in it. He smiled when his hand wrapped around a full, warm mug. Logan took a seat next to Carlos, and as he scooted in, the Latino reached over and scratched him behind the ears, liking the purring noise he made. Logan leaned into his touch, tail and ears twitching in happiness.

Carlos laughed, or… chattered. His tongue rolled against the top of his mouth, making a clicking noise. James glared at them over his cereal, and Carlos quickly with drew his hand from Logan and slapped it over his mouth to silence himself. Meanwhile, Kendall was arching an eyebrow as if to say, 'We're talking about this later'. Logan looked confused as Carlos blushed and stared at the floor.

"Guys," Kendall addressed them, smearing peanut butter on a toaster waffle in the kitchen, "let's try our best to act _normal_ today, okay?" He was satisfied as they met him with nods of agreement. He smiled until he noticed Logan bending over his bowl of Cocoa Puffs and lapping at the milk. The blonde cleared his throat.

"Logie!" Carlos yelped, nudging the other boy in the side to get him to stop. He looked up embarrassed as Kendall glared at him.

"Like I said," Kendall took a bite of his waffle. "Be normal." He started to make hideous smacking noises as he tried to swallow his peanut butter. He didn't even notice as he macked down, licking his face as he made an attempt with no small effort to eat it. His friends giggled but didn't say anything.

All the boys, done with breakfast, went off to do whatever nature called them to, dropping their dishes in the sink. Kendall went down to the gym and hopped on a treadmill. He started panting, and then realized his lungs _weren't_ tiny like a dogs and started breathing normal. He looked around, glad no one had heard him, and kept jogging. It was then that Jo walked into the room. He stepped off.

"Hey!" he said cheerily, "wanna run with me?" She frowned, and gestured to her karate uniform. "Or we can spar!" she grinned.

"Okay! But you're going down!" He shook his head even though he knew he was, and she leaned over to give him a pat on the back. Kendall's leg kicked rapidly. She drew back, and he whimpered and whined until she did it again. Jo stared at him like he was crazy.

Meanwhile, James was taking a lap around the Palm Woods Park, when he saw Logan crouching behind a bush. He was staring intently at something across the path. "Whatchya doin'?" James asked, swooping in silently and watching Logan jump. He gave a hiss of annoyance and James snorted in response. Logan rolled his eyes but pointed to a kite about six feet away.

"I'm gonna catch it," he explained, whispering as if it could hear and going back to watching it. James nodded his head.

"Yeah, okay. You know it's a kite, right?" he reminded him. Logan 'shhh'ed him and suddenly pounced. He attacked the yellow toy with enough ferocity to scare a five year old. James took a seat on the ground and watched, not realizing he was eating the grass around him until his fingers gripped nothing but dirt. He became very aware of the blades stuck between his teeth and almost gagged.

James brushed his hands off and stood up, scowling at the ground where he was just resting. How dare it grow the nasty thing he'd just ate. Then, something else pulled at his attention. James looked up to spot a very determined looking Jett "walking with a purpose", which is a nice way of saying "speed walking but trying to look normal, so his butt jiggled all over the place", into the Palm Woods. He couldn't help but let out a little whinny in distaste. His focus was averted when he heard rustling in a tree above him. He looked up to spot a very content looking Carlos lounging in the branches.

"What are you doing?" he asked, confused. Carlos glared down at him.

"Well, I'm _trying_ to sleep!" he responded, looking annoyed. "Not all of us are strictly diurnal!" He seemed flustered. Meanwhile, James was just trying to work out what the word "diurnal" meant. Suddenly, he became alert at the sound of a howl in the distance. Even Logan, who still had the kite in his hands, had ears up and listening. With the sound of another howl, Carlos leapt from the tree and kept running off in its direction, his friends behind him and following the noise to the Palm Woods.

They burst into the lobby to find a very sweaty Jo and Kendall with a very angry looking Jett. Kendall was gnashing his teeth and snapping them at his girlfriend's costar. His canines looked extremely large and sharp indeed. Acknowledging the mood of their leader, the boys crossed their arms, all giving Jett their most intimidating look. Kendall smirked at something Jett said and pointed to them on the other side of the lobby. Jett's eyes grew big, and he put his hands up in defeat, going across the room and stepping around the three threatening boys.

"What happened?" James asked, walking up to Kendall and Jo. Kendall grinded his teeth together, looking painfully mad.

"He loves her," he replied curtly, and Logan, Carlos, and James's eyes softened in understanding. It was then that all four of their phones started vibrating. They whipped them out to see Gustavo was calling them for a "band meeting"; although they were pretty certain this had nothing to do with music.

They wished Jo a good day and headed outside, tumbling in the limo already parked outside. Kendall gave them an encouraging smile as they road off. "So… how was your day?" All the guys groaned.

**Guys, I sometimes read aloud to my sister (SassyBlonde) and she thought that Logan was "laughing at his milk". She was all "Cats laugh at their milk?" and naturally I thought she said 'lap', so I was all. "Yeah, don't you **_**laugh**_** at your milk?" but actually saying lap. She was all "Ummm… no?"**

**It was confusing. And then we got some milk and laughed at it. FUN TIMES!**

**Oh, and at the top there… I don't think I'll really do anything else with that. I'm big on HINTING, okay?**


	9. Meeting Dr Shatner

**Sorry for the wait! This was… impossible to write. I'm just too excited to start hurting them to get through this…**

The boys tumbled out of the limo and were unnecessarily carried into Gustavo's office. They flinched as Gustavo and… another guy in a white lab coat whirled around in their swivel chairs to face them. They jumped back, startled. All four boys stared at the stranger for a second, until Gustavo's throat being cleared broke them out of their haze.

"Dogs!" he barked, "and… things. This is the guy who's going to fix you." He spoke, looking like a stuffed sausage in the suit and tie he was wearing. "Show him your… parts," he ordered. With another look at the man, the hair on the back of the boys' necks bristled. Kendall growled involuntarily.

"I absolutely refuse to-" Kendall started, but was interrupted.

"Can we talk, for like, a second?" Gustavo asked, but before any of them could answer, he shoved them out into the hallway, closing the door behind them. "Just what is your problem?" he hissed, gesturing erratically at the blonde and his friends.

"Stavie, he's scary!" Carlos squeaked out from behind James's shoulder, face hidden behind his ringed tail. Gustavo crossed his arms, an all-too-familiar scowl forming on his face.

"Okay, first off," he started, holding a finger up, "never call me "Stavie" again, got it? And second, he's the guy who's gonna make you not weird, wait," he back tracked, "make you your _usual_ weird. You know, without the animal stuff? So, WHY ARE YOU SCARED?" he screamed furiously. Kendall stood over him.

"Well, I don't trust him," Kendall said in a sing-song tone, crossing his arms. Logan, James, and Carlos nodded in agreement behind him. Gustavo rubbed his temples in frustration. He was in serious need of a break from these hockey heads.

"You've known him for _two seconds_," he reminded them, exasperated. "How could you already not trust him?" James stepped out from Kendall's shadow and leaned on the blonde's shoulder, looking thoughtful. He scratched his chin.

"It's like… an instinct," he explained, then frowned at the over use of the word in the past couple days. Gustavo buried his face in his hands, knowing how stubborn the guys could be. This time, he was going to play a different tactic. He would get those dogs to show their new parts if it killed him. He sighed.

"Look, that man in there is Leonard B. Shatner, and he is the only man in the world who can help you, got it? This is your one chance," he begged, "So just… take it, okay?" Gustavo asked, sounding vulnerable. It was weird enough for the boys to cave, and they started pulling out their tails at their leader's disgruntled 'fine'. They headed back into the office, James tugging his shirt off over his gold-streaked hair. They stood shoulder to shoulder awkwardly, waiting for the doctor to do his thing.

"They're ready Dr. Shatner, "Gustavo informed his, and the man looked at them wide eyed and almost… hungrily. Logan pulled away uncomfortably as the man gently laid a hand as if he couldn't believe they were real. His eyes locked on the top of his head.

"You're incredible," he told them, fingering one of Logan's soft, raven-black ears. He hissed absent mindedly and took a step back, feeling threatened, but the doctor paid him no mind, and started toying with his tail. He smiled and moved onto Kendall, who snipped at him. He laughed and gave him a scratch on the head, acting like he was nothing more than a playful puppy. Kendall bared his teeth. "Your canines are fantastic!" he squealed like a little kid on Christmas morning. He went to James, brushing a hand over his stripes and staring at them in awe. "Absolutely exquisite!" James snorted in distaste. Carlos was last. Dr. Shattner traced the rings around his eyes, and Carlos batted him away, feeling squeamish under his touch.

"Well?" Gustavo asked, coming up beside him and twiddling his thumbs nervously.

"Well, what?" came Dr. Shatner's dazed reply. The man was still engrossed with the boys' "genetic wonders" as he was referring to them as he muttered about them under his breath. Gustavo frowned.

"Can you fix them?" The thinner man looked up, a bit shocked to be back in reality. He quickly regained his composure, straightening his tie and tucking his shirt in a little tighter.

"Oh yes, of course," he answered, but no sooner had he said it, did a sly grin creep up the corners of his mouth. Inside, the boys' instincts were going absolutely mad. Kendall caught Gustavo's eye and gave him a hard look, puffing up his chest to look intimidating.

"I don't like this," he growled through gritted teeth, flashing his sharp teeth at the doctor. He would do anything to protect his pack, and it was high time he learned it. Dr. Shatner frowned and fiddled with his collar.

"Is there a problem?" he asked, concerned voice laced with anger. His eyes told the same story. Gustavo frantically shook his head, rushing over to Kendall's side, trying to hide a slap to the back of the blonde's head. He gave him a glare.

"No! There is absolutely _no problem_," he said with emphasis, trying to make his point clear to all the boys. Then he whispered in Kendall's ear, "We need him." Kendall's jaw set, but he remained silent, much to Gustavo's pleasure. They spent the next three hours being poked and prodded, and the wolf-boy nearly went ballistic when the doctor stuck Logan with a needle to hard, making him yelp. Not to mention how angry he got when Carlos wouldn't keep still, and Dr. Shatner threatened to tranquilize him.

After that, they were crammed into the recording booth to practice harmonies for the next four hours, followed by two hours of dancing with Mr. X. Needless to say, the boys got back to 2J at eleven, absolutely exhausted. They got ready for bed immediately. James pulled a red v-neck over his head, flicking his bangs into place.

"I don't trust him," he declared, plopping on his bed in his zebra stripped PJ pants. Oh the irony. He was seriously starting to regret buying these. Carlos scampered up to his bunk above him in a gray hoodie and blue, plaid, drawstring pants.

"Neither do I," he agreed with a frown, and put a hand over his chest. "He makes me feel all weird," he tried to voice his feeling, but it was too hard to explain. Luckily, Logan had his back.

"Yeah… it's like a pull," he explained from lower bunk beneath Kendall's. He looked to his toes, "It's like… it's telling you to run away," he admitted, letting them interpret his fear for themselves. Kendall swung his upper body over the rail of his bed to get a good look at Logan, eyes big and yellow in the dark.

"Don't worry, Loges. I won't let him do anything to any of us that we don't want him to do," he assured him. Logan offered him a grateful smile, propped up on his elbows. A grunt from Carlos interrupted the moment.

"It was scary when he touched my face," he announced, tearing Logan's eyes away from innocently on Kendall's and to his own. He nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, that was creepy," he exclaimed with a shudder, quaking in his dark green tee and gray sweat pants. James traced the stripes on his side subconsciously, a habit he had recently acquired, as he lay in his bed, staring at the slats of the bunk above him.

"And when he touched my chest and stuff," he squeaked, heart racing at the thought of it. Something about Dr. Shatner completely terrified him, and he knew he wasn't the only one to feel that way. All his friends were scared of him too, which just made it that much worse.

"Guys," Kendall's voice interrupted his thoughts, his voice floating down from above. Kendall fiddled with his white v-neck, squirming in his pale blue, bubble-covered boxers. "Let's just forget about it for tonight and get some sleep, okay?" He was met with multiple yeses, and soon, the room was filled with snoring and heavy breathing. Kendall was the only one up. He hopped down from his bed, and landing softly on the floor in his socks, then padding into 2J. He circled through, passing by his mom and Katie's room.

Suddenly, his ears stood up erect.

Sensing something, Kendall whirled around to see behind him, but was stopped when a soaked, dirty rag was pressed over his face. His world faded to black as a voice whispered in his ear, "You're min now."

And, with that, Kendall passed out, with no prayer of warning his friends.

**Well, I hope you're happy. That was absolute torture. BTW, sorry about all the outfit crap, but… they're going to be in the same clothes for a while, and I figured I should just get it out of the way, you feel me?**

**PS, if anyone can figure out who's names I combined to make the evil guy's name, EXTRA POINTS! I'll give you a hint…**

**The first name and the last name both belong to two actors' who were stars in the most rocking SciFi ever on earth. Seriously. You guys know this. SHATNER! Just think about it…**


	10. Welcome To Research Camp!

**CheekyBrunette is very, very sad. She has straight B's this marking period. And it's… gah. I'm just all upset. That's not normal Cheeky behavior. She's used to A's and B's at the least, and now… just B's. I'm gonna cry. Must. Escape. World of. Sadness. With Fan. Fiction…**

Kendall's eyes opened groggily as he awoke from his drug induced sleep. He peered around blearily, disoriented. Where was he? His eyes focused in on something shiny in front of him, and his breath hitched in his throat, stomach churning. He reached out in front of him, looking at his surroundings and gagged, everything coming back all too quickly.

He was in a dog cage.

The bars glistened around him, and he felt nauseous. He remembered being drugged and the words being whispered in his ear, "You're mine now." He shuddered. He could only hope his friends hadn't been taken as well. Kendall threw up when he looked to his sides, his friends in cages beside him. He scooted to the other side of his cage, the cold metal biting into is skin. This wasn't happening. It couldn't be.

He ran his fingers through his hair, whimpering psychotically. He looked around the sterile lab that was his new home and felt the bile rise back in his throat. This just couldn't be real.

He watched his friends sleep. He was sandwiched between Logan and James. Carlos was nestled up in his cage beside Logan, curled up into the corner, thumb in his mouth. Logan was hugging his knees to his chest, cheek buried into his knee. They both had such a child-like innocence to them, Kendall couldn't stand the idea of either of them waking up to _this_. James was lying down, knees bent in his too short cage. Suddenly, Kendall noticed something different with them. With all of them. He brought a hand to his neck.

One was there too.

All four of them were wearing collars with two boxes on the side, lights blinking in each. He fingered his fearfully, not wanting to find out what it did. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw James stir in his sleep. _Oh my gosh. Go back to bed, go back to bed, go back right NOW!_ But it was useless. James's eyes flickered open. "Where are we?" he croaked, voice cracking from being out of use. Kendall shook his head. James looked at him cross eyed, not realizing where they were yet. "Kendall, what's wrong?" he asked, aware enough to see the terrified look on his face, but strangely not the thin, silver bars surrounding him.

"James!" he creaked. That got the zebra boy up in a flash. He looked at the blonde with wide, frightened eyes, seeming stressed.

"Kendall, what's wrong? Oh my gosh," he caught sight of his confinements. "Where are we? What's going on? Kendall?" His words getting tighter and tighter woven with panic. "Kendall!" The blonde shook himself out of his daze and 'shh'ed the taller boy, pointing to the sleeping boys next to him. James's eyes widened. "But, Kendall, where are we?" he whispered. Kendall choked on his words, trying to speak, but a groan from Carlos interrupted him anyway.

"Morning guys!" Carlos said cheerily, stretching. He rubbed his eyes and opened them, highlighting instantaneously with terror as he realized he was trapped. Kendall gripped at the grid of bars keeping him from reaching Carlos, fear etched into his face. The Latino looked back at him, gulping and holding up flood gates.

"Carlitos…" Kendall started, but it didn't matter. Carlos kicked back up as far away as he could in his cage, already broken. Tears slipped down his cheeks as he stared at his toes. And as bad as he and James were taking it, Kendall was the most scared about Logan. Because, on top of the initial fear of being trapped in a _cage_, Logan was also claustrophobic.

Speaking of, the raven-haired boy woke up, propping himself up on his elbows with a tremendous yawn. It literally took him two seconds to take in everything that was going on. "I'm in a cage," he said calmly enough, which just made Kendall even more terrified. A glance back at James proved he was feeling the same way. Logan started to hyperventilate. "I'm- in- a- _cage_!" he nearly screamed, chest heaving as he struggled to breathe. He snatched at the bars surrounding him, clutching his heart. "Kendall. Get. Me. OUT!" he screeched. Kendall couldn't stop the waterworks.

"I-I-I _can't_," he apologized, feeling guilty. Logan shook his head, and it pained Kendall as he watched him struggle to swallow, his stomach knotting up all over again.

"No." Logan had a crazed look in his eyes. "No, no, no, no, no!" he yelled, and then madly started tearing at his cages as if he could rip it to shreds. His muscles tensed as he tried to break it apart, a cry rising in his throat.

"Logie, please stop!" James begged, sounding scared. Carlos just watched him sadly. Kendall's brain did summersaults as he tried to figure out which problem to address first. And suddenly, without warning, everything clicked. His cage rattled as he got up on his knees, trying to gain as much dignity as he could. Normally he'd stand, but there wasn't enough room for that.

"Logan," he said gruffly. "LOGAN!" he yelled, snagging the shorter boys' attention, but just barely. "Look, I know you don't like small places," he said with a sigh, "but you need to learn to _love_ this one, okay? Because this," he gestured to his cage, "is the only thing that's keeping you from _out there_," he explained. Logan gulped as he caught sight of the syringes and scalpels on metal trays just across from the stainless steel shelf they were on. He nodded, but Kendall could tell he was only internalizing his fear. In this case, that was probably the best way to go about it.

"Okay, next, do you know what these are?" he asked, tugging at the collar around his neck. A chuckle from the doorway caught his attention before he got an answer. A dark figure stood, back to the light, just inside.

"Oh, I can tell you what those are!" the owner of the laugh, a man, told them. He stepped forwards a little, face barely recognizable in the dimly lit lab. "They're part GPS tracking device, and part shock collar. Lovely little inventions, I can't believe I wasn't the one to think of them, they're so perfect. All I have to do is take out the buzzer," he said, pulling out a remote control, "turn the knob up to whatever strength I want," he cranked the dial up all the way, "and flip the switch!" And with that, he slammed down on a button, and the boys backs arched as electricity coursed through their veins. Kendall gritted his teeth as his friends screamed.

"Shatner!" he grunted bitingly. The man laughed, coming closer toward them so the other boys could recognize him as well. Kendall growled and snarled as he neared, his new way of warning him to stay away from his pack. Leonard Shatner grinned twistedly.

"Oh, Kendall. You think you can keep me away from your friends?" he asked, eyebrow rising in mock curiosity. He snickered. "Cause, you know you can't right? After all, you're locked up with a _taser_ pinned to your neck, so what's to stop me from doing this?" he asked, and with that, flipped open the door to Logan's cage.

_No, just absolutely no_, Kendall thought, _There is no way you are hurting him more, take me!_ He begged inwardly, but was knew better than to voice it. Then there would be no way Logan would get out of it. Dr. Shatner never the less grabbed him by the collar, dragging him out of his cage, and somehow managed to stuff him, kicking and screaming into a smaller cage on wheels, pushing him out of the room, Logan screaming the entire way. He gave the boys a wave as he left, them all gripping at the bars of their cages, trying to escape and save their Logie.

* * *

"Welcome to your first day at research camp, Logan!" the scientist said excitedly, Logan standing on a platform on the ground. He looked around, trying to find the source of Dr. Shatner's voice, but finding only speakers. "Let's see how you like it!" And with that, the tiled platform he was standing on stared to lift from the ground, rising up a good ten feet from the ground. Logan shook, scared for what was coming.

"Today's goal," the voice announced from above, "is to land on your feet! You have until your legs break! And after that, we'll test your healing capabilities!" he said, sounding impossibly excited over something so sick and sadistic. And with that, the platform fell away from under him, and Logan leapt to the ground, landing neatly on his toes. Despite how terrified he was, he dusted his hands off and stood up straight, proud of his achievement.

Time after time, he was lifted up, heights increasing well into the hundreds, and dropped, jumping to his feet each and every single time he was dropped. He made it really far. Almost far enough to beat the system go higher than the room allowed, but he was short. At 211 feet, Logan's legs shattered beneath him. His bones broke through the skin, and his spine whipped inside him. A loud sigh cackled over the speakers.

"_Finally_!" Dr. Shatner groaned. "It took you long enough! But I admit, Logan, I'm impressed! And stop screaming, you'll be out of pain soon enough!" And with that, Logan was strapped to a gernie by faceless white cloaked figures and rolled out of the room.

They took him back to the lab, throwing him onto the operating table awaiting him inside, and his friends watched as they fit his legs back together, taking spinal taps and various other tests, fixing his other broken or damaged parts.

Tears streamed down all the boys' faces, and eventually Logan was literally thrown back in his cage next to his friends, casts bloody and stained, eyes almost lifeless as he stayed, unmoving where they had tossed him. Kendall stretched his fingers through the openings of the bars, willing to do anything to do anything to just give him a hug, let alone make him better.

And with that, the lights went out completely. Leaving them to rest after quite possibly the longest day of their lives.

**I wasn't going to throw that jumping thing in, actually. I had thought about it, was like, "nah," but then wrote it anyway… yeah.**


	11. You're Freaks

**Haha, sorry for the wait guys. I was away at REVOLVE! **

**SO TWO DEMANDS: Listen to Jamie Grace's "Hold Me" and Hawk Nelson's "Crazy Love". **

**Now, STORY TIME!**

Logan whimpered in the total darkness that he had just plunged into. Out of the lights eye, it felt like his cage was wrapping tighter around him, making Logan even more claustrophobic then he was before. He was vaguely aware of Kendall saying something encouraging, followed by James, but he was too scared to focus on their voices. His breath hitched as his head filled with visions of his cell compressing him until he squeezed through the bars like toothpaste. He wanted to run away, to tear his way out and just go.

But Logan was still.

It hurt too much to hyperventilate, let alone sprint out of this godforsaken place. It was only the first day, and Logan already couldn't take being there at all. It felt like his every cell had been stomped on and then lit on fire. Pain shot through his legs like bullets, and he wrapped his tail a little tighter around them, trying to keep them as still as he could manage. He let out a groan as his stomach flipped in hunger. The last thing he and the guys had eaten was Subway at Roque Records.

Logan shifted his left arm that had landed fitfully underneath him when he was thrown in his cage, and held back a scream as his spine went with it. The ache and fear controlling every fiber of his being was becoming too consuming, and Logan didn't want to be part of the world anymore. He retreated into himself. His mind crept into a tight ball deep in its core, leaving Logan a hollow shell.

Just when he was nearly too far gone, at the split second where he was almost completely lost within, the lights flickered on, footsteps echoing off the walls as the men dressed in white clunked into the room. Suddenly, after a hard pull to the collar of his shirt, Logan wasn't staring at the blank wall through the wars of his cage, but at the ceiling. Logan's whole world shifted beneath him. _What the…?_

His thoughts were cut off as a ripping sound filled the air. Logan looked down in shock as his casts were torn off his legs by unnaturally strong, white-gloved hands. He screamed as his shin was thrown down on the table, needles immediately poking themselves through his skin.

"Very good, Logan!" Dr. Shatner praised as he stepped into the room, the remote for their collars poised in his hands. "You're healing at a remarkable rate! By tomorrow, I'm sure I'll be able to test you again! In the meantime, enjoy a well deserved rest."

"It hurts!" Logan wailed tightly, earning a dull shock to his neck as well as his friends', who spazmed in their cages. His back arched painfully as he twisted, trying to squirm away from the sparking metal prongs hidden under the leather of his collar. He screamed as his vertebrae moved in a way he wasn't ready for. Apparently, Dr. Shatner didn't like it when his lab mice squeaked.

"Yes, yes it does, but think of it this way! It's in the name of science," he said cheerily. "You're a smart boy, you can appreciate that, can't you?" he asked rhetorically. A growl rolled of Kendall's tongue. He looked fierce.

"You're sick," he bit, anger dripping from his words. "Can't you see he's already in pain? Why don't you just leave him alone?" Kendall's eyes flashed with malice, and Dr. Shatner rolled his eye and snapped his fingers. The men in white followed his unspoken command without hesitation and threw Logan back in his cage, locking the door. Logan couldn't help but let out a small squeal as he bounced against the bars.

"For a mutant in a compromising position, you don't listen very well. I can't experiment on Logan until he can stand without falling apart," he explained with a chuckle at his own disturbing joke. Kendal visibly relaxed until he took a step toward James's cage. "But that doesn't mean I'll leave all of you boys in your cages all day," he donned a rubber glove and took out the controller that filled all four boys eyes with fear. "After all, even freaks need their exercise." And with that, volts coursed through James's veins, and he was forced into the same rolling cage Logan had been in and carted away. Kendall cursed to himself as his friend looked back at him with terror written clearly on James's face.

* * *

"Alright James," came a voice over a speaker system in a thin, long room. James stood up confused. He looked back to the door he had been pushed though, only to see the thin outline of it on an otherwise white wall. "You're probably dying to run around after being locked up for so long, so here's your opportunity."

Suddenly, the floor started rolling beneath him like a giant treadmill, quickly increasing its speed until he was in a full out sprint. His bare feet slapped at the ground beneath him as he galloped as fast as he could.

"Very impressive, James. You're going 60 miles an hour! It's good to see your zebra DNA isn't going to waste!" But Dr. Shatner's words fell on deaf ears. James was currently too focused on keeping himself upright and moving to pay attention to the evil scientist's words.

After 10 minute eternity, he broke his run. In his haste, his toes dragged across the ground, and he fell. Hard. The floor instantly whipped him away and slammed him into the wall. The still speeding tread burned as it raced beneath him, working like a sander and rubbing his bare skin raw. By the time it stopped, the sleeve of his shirt and the knees of his pants were nothing by bloody threads. He rolled over, already scabbing over as he squirmed on the ground in pain.

"Well… you don't have the endurance I expected, but you were still miraculous. Can you imagine the possibilities that could come from this?" Dr. Shatner asked, sounding thrilled. James tried to be like Kendall and shoot the man a glare, but he couldn't. He was in too much pain to even open his eyes.

He didn't even feel himself being gathered up and thrown back into the evil prison cell that had brought him there. All he knew was that he was somehow back in his own eventually, next to a nervous looking Kendall. His big, brown eyes focused on the other two cages, only to find Carlos missing and Logan just lying on the cold floor of his own, face contorted into one of horror, something that James was unfortunately getting used to seeing.

"Are you okay?" Kendall asked, and James realized that, despite looking like a bloody mess, he was. He nodded his head, and Kendall shuddered as Logan whimpered next to him. "He's been doing that for a while, but it sounds like he's getting better. I mean, he's actually proving he's alive now. Plus, he moves every now and again." James nodded, not sure what to say to that. Kendall sighed. "I don't know what he's planning to do with Carlos," he said forelornly. James's thoughts, however, were elsewhere.

"Kendall, are we freaks?" he asked. The blonde gave him a crooked look.

"No, why?" he asked, not sure where James was coming from, but wanting to make him feel better immediately. So far, life was horrible enough, he would rather James _not_ be having self-esteem issues on top of everything else. James huffed.

"Cause we _are_," he answered, decision made. Kendall gaped.

"James, we are _not_ freaks!" he yelped, shocked that James, the king of confidence, would doubt it. James kicked at the bars of his cage, resting his chin on his knees. He scoffed.

"I think the tails, strips, and ears would beg to differ," he responded coolly and a little sadly.

"James, we aren't freaks," Kendall tried to drill into his head, not entirely believing it himself, but putting earnesty in his words anyway. Even if he didn't buy it, James should. The taller boy flicked his streaked hair out of his eyes and gave a lopsided shrug, trying to keep his scabbed arm still as he did so. On the up side, it was getting better at a creepy pace, dried blood cells falling to his cage floor disgustingly as it healed.

"Whatever you say, Kendall," he said, but the blonde knew he didn't mean it, but he didn't know what else to say. He just sat in his cell, throwing worried glances at Logan and dying to know what was going on with Carlos.

**I hated this one SO MUCH!**

**Guys, do you know that song Headphones I wrote a fic to? Well, I saw the girl who sings it live yesterday and Friday. IT WAS AWESOME! Revolve rocks. **

**Um, QUESTION TIME! ANSWER THIS! **

**Would you rather…**

**a) eat a car covered in expired soy sauce and milk**

**b) kiss the most unattractive, gross person you know**

**c) cover yourself in gravy and hug the elderly**


	12. Carlos's Brain

**HAHA! You're FACE, school computer! CheekyBrunette is a WINNER!**

**Eh-hem.**

**Now, I have something for all ya'll to do right away if you haven't already, you need to go read "Contests, Tours, and Summer Love," by SilentReader##### because she's amazing. She's really witty, really funny, and really clever. GO DO IT! I COMMAND YOU!**

**Now, STORY TIME!**

Carlos woke up, dazed and strapped to a spindly chair with something that resembled a big metal colander bolted to his head. He started to panic, body flooding wit fear as he pulled on the stainless steel braces that were holding him down. He was stopped when a painful, electric pulse was drilled into his neck.

"Hello, Carlos! Fortunately, James was fast with his testing, and now you also get a turn to practice your skills today!" Dr. Shatner's words seemed to drift through his brain, coming from everywhere. _What's going on? _Carlos wondered, trying not to throw up. "Why, I just told you Carlos, we're testing!" Came the voice again, floating through his mind.

"Where are you?" Carlos yelled, scared. "What's going on? What did you do with James?" He winced as laughter pierced through his skull, the loud noise unbearable.

"Why, I'm in your head, of course! The helmet you're wearing right now lets us transfer thoughts. It's another one of those inventions I can't _believe_ wasn't mine! Such a helpful thing, especially in matters of the brain." Carlos whimpered, shaking in his confinements. "As for what's going on, Carlos, we're going to test your intelligence." Carlos's lower lip trembled.

"What does that mean?" he asked aloud, earning another fit of consuming laughter to take over his mind. He flinched at its harshness, as steely cold as the chair he sat on.

"Now, now. Enough people underestimate your species, don't add me to the list!" Dr. Shatner chastised, followed by a "tsk"ing noise swirling in his head. He squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to block him out, but he just kept talking. "So what's going to happen is equations are going to pop up on the monitor in front of you, and you are to solve them within a certain time frame. If your answer is wrong, you will be shocked again, make sense?"

"No!" Carlos answered, incredulous that this man would to this to him. He breathed, trying to calm himself. "Where's James, is he okay?" he asked, worried for his friend. He had seen what happened to Logan, and he didn't want his friend to end up the same way.

"Yes, yes, he's _fine_," Dr. Shatner snapped, seemingly annoyed. "I only made him run, he'll be okay. Now, on with the first question." Carlos stared at the long problem on the board, trying to process it.

"Um, four?" he asked, figures still flitting through his brain.

Carlos's screams filled the hallway.

* * *

Logan breathed shallowly in his cage, each breath sending a pang to his chest, but thankfully it was much less painful than before. His eyes were shut in an attempt to block out the image of the bars surrounding him, but it didn't help. It almost seemed more terrifying in his head than in real life. He almost couldn't handle it. Almost.

"Kendall?" he squeaked, voice hoarse and tight from misuse. The blonde's attention immediately focused on his twisted body, cured up on the unforgiving, cold metal floor of his cage.

"Logan?" he answered hopefully, practically pouncing on him in excitement for him to be better. "How are you feeling, buddy?" he asked, happy to even have a prayer of a chance to get an answer. Logan's tail crept up the thin, wire grid surrounding him, looping up around a bar at the top of his cage. His ears flickered fitfully, and his eyes flashed open, revealing slit like pupils, bearing into Kendall.

"I'm scared," he said, giving a shudder that sent pure agony up his spine. Kendall winced as Logan grunted from pain, banging his fist on the ground, and turning, restless in an attempt to get comfortable. He clawed at his cage, wishing he could race over to help his friend, but there were practically _walls _in his way. He looked over at James, who was doing the same thing. The zebra-boy gulped.

"Does it… hurt, Logan?" he asked, a slight tremor in his voice. Logan gave him a look. He raised a hand weakly, making as if holding a phone to his ear.

"Hello?" he 'answered', and looked to James, "It's Dumb Questions Incorporated. Yeah, they're gonna have to charge you for that one." Despite themselves, huge smiles crept up on all three boys' faces, and they fell into giant fits of laughter. Logan held his aching sides but didn't stop, it felt too good. Sure, it hadn't been that funny, but it was like when your friend tells a stupid joke at three am. It's just magically hilarious, and that's what was happening to them right now

James gave him a bright smile when he somehow managed to compose himself. "Thanks, Logan," he said earnestly, not sure what he was grateful for, but saying so anyway.

"For what?" Logan asked, and James just grinned like an idiot.

"For being you."

**Haha, poor Carlos would be so jealous. Hm… I have no plans for this. We'll see where I go next chapter. (I have plans, just… no specific ones for just next chappy)**

**REMEMBER TO READ^^^^^**

**And BTW, I'm going on vacation until Sunday so no updates for a tidge. Course, I don't EVER update on Sundays ever ANYWAY!**


	13. You HAVE To Sing!

**Alright. Um... this will probably be the least edited thing I have ever put up on this site, cause I'm doing it on my Mac which for me is just... a process. Gah. BUT WHATEVER, RIGHT? Right. Just so you know, I haven't even thought about this, so I have no clue what's going to happen. It's been pretty dark lately, and I feel like some utter cuteness. (I mean, sure, it'll still have dark notes, but with cute hinted throughout. You know what I mean)**

**By the way, I don't own Glee, or Mike Posner, or any of their songs, or any thing else you've probably heard of in this chapter...**

The boys watched as Carlos was rolled into the room and tossed into his cage, unconscious. Kendall's stomach rolled as he envisioned the horrible things they might have done to the Latino. His fists clenched when he noticed the red, burned area around Carlos's wrists and neck, indicating the places where he had been electrically burned. He became aware of Logan staring at him and quickly looked into his big, brown, scared eyes. The blonde sighed and stretched his fingers through the bars surrounding him and linked them with Logan's when he did the same thing. He gave a squeezed, silently saying everything would be alright. Logan offered him a grin, trying to be strong, and bit back tears.

James snorted next to him, swirling his tail mindlessly behind him. His fingers were posed on his chin like he was deep in thought. Suddenly, he looked up from the random spot on the floor he had been staring at. "When I grow up," he started, "it's going to be a requirement to sing at the dinner table." When his friends gave him identical weird looks, he explained himself. "Well, you guys have been yelling at me for singing at the table since Minnesota, so when I have my own house everyone is going to _have _to sing. Wednesdays will be Glee night, and Friday will be opera night. I'll even get a trap door in the ceiling and I'll swing down in a viking at before we start, sing my part, and then go back up into the ceiling when I'm done my song." Kendall shook his head while Logan just looked at him almost exasperatedly. Kendall cracked a smile.

"Why would your brain even think that?" he asked, grinning like a idiot. "Like, that's just so ridiculous!" And with that, Kendall was lying on the floor laughing, and not just regular, plain old giggling either. This was side-aching, body-shaking, tear-forming guffawing as he practically started to hyperventilate in his cage. "Wh-wh-_why?" _he struggled to ask. And James just crossed his arms.

"It's not that weird!" he defended himself. "I mean, I'm pretty much _starving_, so I was thinking about when we last had dinner, and you guys had been yelling at me for singing "Bow Chicka Wow Wow", which wasn't really fair cause you guys know how catchy Mike Posner's stuff is, so it really wasn't _my_ fault, and-" James cut off when he realized his friends weren't exactly "with him" any more, and instead were rolling on the ground laughing. He just groaned when the song got re-stuck in his head. That's when he saw Carlos's eyes flash open, pupils pinpricks. The Latino started panting in his cage.

"Um, Carlos?" Logan asked, being the first to recover from laughing. "Are you okay?" he questioned, with a slight tremor in his voice.

"F-fine," the lemur gasped, for some reason struggling to breathe. But his ragged breaths grew calmer as the red circling his wrists and neck dissipated, thinning into thin, ugly brown lines. James winced, figuring those scars were ones that weren't going anywhere anytime soon. Carlos blinked hard and looked up at his friends who were staring at him worridly and offered them a shaky smile. "I don't think I'm as smart as Dr. Short-ner thought I was." Kendall bit his lip, hiding a smile.

"He is pretty short," he said with a snort, and chuckled at the words of agreement his friends immediately pelted him with, but then a frown formed on his face. "Carlos..." he said slowly, "what happened to you?" he asked, and Carlos's previously joy filled eyes went dark. He shuddered and curled his knees up to his chest and buried his face between them.

"He brought me into a room and asked me math questions," he explained after some hesitation. He paused again, completely humiliated by what had happened, and hiding behind a smile like he usually did when he felt dumb wasn't exactly going to work this time. Carlos was completely mortified that he was going to have to explain this to his friends. "Every time I got one wrong he would zap me with the cuffs he was using to keep me in the chair," he said, and crossed his fingers that his short explanation would be the end of it. Of course, just like everything else recently, it couldn't be that easy.

"You seemed pretty burned," James said with a wince, earning daggers from Logan. Carlos just sort of slumped further into his knees if possible. He looked up embarrassed.

"I got a lot of questions wrong," he admitted, feeling nauseous. He caught onto Kendall staring at him, he looked back at him and saw everything he needed to boost his confidence in the blonde's eyes. When the Latino straightened up, Kendall nearly sighed in relief. Thank goodness he had time to practice being a leader before this, he would be lost if he was just thrown into it, unable to communicate without words. One of the biggest benefits of being besties for so long: talking wasn't necessary. Then a thought dawned on him and he turned quickly to Logan, so fast, in fact, that the boy jumped. He suddenly noticed Logan was sitting up, which meant he was feeling much better, but that didn't stop his train of thought.

"What did he do to you?" he asked, and Logan tensed, becoming expressionless. The pale boy looked at him with scarily blank eyes and shrugged.

"He wanted to see if I would always land on my feet like a cat can," he said like it was no big deal, but the inhumanly empty face he had made Kendall think otherwise. "So he dropped me from different heights, going higher and higher to see how long I could keep doing it for." Carlos looked at him incredulously.

"Could you do it?" he asked, oblivious to his insensitivity. Logan shook his head.

"Nope," he answered, popping the 'p'. He continued, voice soft as he remembered something he would rather not think about ever again. "He brought it up too high and I fell too hard. I think it broke my legs and cracked my spine. I know I got really bad whiplash, though," he said, absentmindedly curling his tail over his still bandaged shins, and James trembled slightly at the thought of what still might not be healed under there. He became uncomfortable when he found Logan's stare centered on him. "What did he do to you?" he asked, almost sounding bitter, and James figured it was because by the time Logan had woken up, he was completely healed, evoking jealousy from the shorter boy. He couldn't really blame him.

"He made me run really fast for as long as I could cause I guess zebras can be speedy or something. Anyway, eventually I tripped and fell and got all bloody and stuff, but now I'm okay. It sort of healed really fast, just like Carlitos over there," he explained, and watched as a smile grew on Carlos's face in response to the nickname. He saw Logan relax a little, but then his demeanor shifted into one of empathy, definitely suiting him more.

"I'm sorry that happened to you," he said, eyes filled with a shared hurt, and Carlos's eyebrows knit together. He couldn't help but but in.

"Yeah, me too, Jay. It stinks that all _three_ of us got hurt," he added in an effort to include himself. That's when the door suddenly banged open, making all four boys flinch. A loud cackle bubbled from Dr. Shatner's figured, cloaked in the eternal dark light of the lab. The guys immediately knew what was coming.

"Exactly my thinking, Carlos, which is why I want to include Kendall. Because you're right, it stinks that _only_ three of you got hurt."

**there's only one way, two say, those three words, and that's what I'll dooooooooooooo! Dude, I am on a Mike Posner, Plain White T's, We the Kings, NewsBoys, The Ready Set, Jesse McCartney, Neyo, and The Ready Set high right now. like, I've only been listening to them, and them alone for, like, three weeks. That doesn't sound like a lot of time for so many artists, but I'm constantly listening to music so it's sort of ridiculous, actually. Hrmf. If you haven't heard of any of the people above (which I doubt), you should probably go check 'em out. AWESOME!**

**Gah, I seem to be worse at updating when I actually have time for it. FREE TIME GIVES ME WRITERS BLOCK! That and being well rested...**

**Guys, you know those reeses eggs for easter? Like, the really little ones? I wanna put, like, tracking devices inside cause mid year I know I have a bunch laying around but I don't know where they are. I could stick it right in the peanut butter and suck it off when I wanted to eat one. **


	14. Catch It

**HE'S THE GUY YOU SHOULD FEEL SORRY FOR, HE HAD THE WORLD BUT THOUGHT THAT HE WANTED MORE! I OWE It ALL TO THE MISTAKE THAT HE MADE BACK THEN, I OWE IT ALL TO MY GIRL'S EX BOYFRIEND!  
BEST. SONG. EVAH!**

**If you don't know it, it's ex boyfriend by Relient K, and it is AWESOME. Kay thanks.**

The blonde was thrown into that godforsaken rolling cart they were all starting to hate. He grimaced as he hit it's metal bottom, still sticky from James's blood. He snarled at the cage's pusher as the lid shut on top of him. He whirled around in the cramped space, giving his friends a reassuring look at the sight of their frightened expressions. They stared back at him, eyes as big as saucers, wide with fear, and his stomach lurched.

Kendall Knight was the leader of Big Time Rush, eternally strong and brave, no matter what. It had never been easy, trying to remain an anchor for his friends through all their heartbreaks and home trouble, but nothing could have prepared him for how hard it was now. It was almost suffocating how much they were leaning on him, whether they acknowledged that they were doing it or not. As he stole one last glance back at them, he caught the lost looks already contorting on their faces. As Kendall rolled out of sight, he let his facade drop, allowing his true terror to show.

Kendall hated this feeling of vulnerability that was consuming him. He wanted to be strong for his friends, but this whole situation they had been thrust into was just too overwhelming for him. After all, wherever he was going, he had no doubt in his mind he was going to get hurt, and wouldn't that be too much for you to handle, too? Honestly, Kendall was quaking about what was about to happen, he was just one person... thing, and he obviously didn't want to be tortured.

Soon enough, he was dumped... outside? Kendall looked up to find himself surrounded by trees. He stood up, stunned with mud seeping through the thick socks he was still wearing. His eyes flickered with hesitation, but in a split second he was off running. He moved in a crazed sprint, high off of the thought of freedom, a wild fire burning within him as he tasted escape. He didn't care where he was going, just that he got the hell away from that horrendous lab. Kendall's feet flew as he raced in a frenzy. He could get help, he could save his friends, he would never be in a cage again, he could- His thoughts were cut off when he ran into a...

Wall?

Kandall gasped, feeling the white drywall in front of him, mind swirling with denial. _No, no, no, no, no, no! This can NOT be happening!_ But yes. Kendall had never even came close to escaping, but he wasn't willing to believe it. He searched the entire length of the huge room he was in, ignoring the sunless "sky" above and the unnatural still of artificial air. He lapped the space five times around, maddened in desperation to get out, before falling to his knees in defeat. How could he have been so stupid? The word depressed took on a full new meaning for him, as a loud cackle crackled over an unseen speaker above. The blonde balled his fists.

"Oh Kendall, and here i thought you were smarter than that! I have seriously been overestimating you boys' intelligence lately!" Dr. Shatner laughed from above. The boy in question bit back angry tears, and remained stoic. He didn't need to say anything about how sadistic, and cruel, and sick this man was. They both already knew it.

"What do I have to do?" Kendall asked, straightforward and trying to keep the let-down out of his voice. Of course, just like the rest of his day, that didn't turn out so well.

"Oh, Ken-doll," the boy scowled at the nickname, hating even when his friends called him that, "You seem so disappointed! What you have to do is simple." Suddenly, a small cage popped up from the floor, revealing a brown, scared bunny, cowering in the farthest corner. "Catch the rabbit." And with that, the door was opened, and the bunny sprinted off into the shrubs, immediately getting lost in the false forrest surrounding him. "You have a half hour."

Crap.

Kendall started moving instantly, not knowing what would happen if he failed to catch the furry, little thing, but knew he wasn't willing to find out. Not yet anyway. He worked on instinct, nose picking up the rabbit's scent as he waded through the ferns, the weird feeling of blood lust lolling through his mind.

* * *

Logan stayed huddled in the corner of his cage, feeling nauseous with fear and trying to ignore the half-hearted conversation about pickles James and Carlos were having over his head. Instead, he concentrated on not panicking. What if Kendall got hurt? What if he died? There could be an accident, he might never come back! Countless times in the past, Kendall had _promised _to keep them safe as long as he was alive. How could Logan be okay if Kendall wasn't there to look out for him? Logan struggled to contol his breathing as the weight of the world settled onto his shoulders.

Logan shook his head in disbelief as the bars of his cage appeared to be tightening around him. He closed his eyes to block out the sounds of his friends' voices. He knew they were just trying to forget about Kendall's absence like he was, but didn't they know how much he needed silence before he burst into tears? He clawed at his ears, trying to disregard the cage that seemed to be closing in on him as fast as his options were. Logan closed his eyes to the concerned looks Carlos was giving him.

He was so scared, it was almost a relief when the men in white came to snatch him away after the lights went out, signaling sleep, in the lab and stuffed him in that literally bloody cage with Carlos.

Almost.

* * *

Kendall smiled to himself as he snuck up on the bunny, teeth sharp and ready. Finally, after twenty minutes of hunting, he would catch this thing. His feet stepped silently on the soft "earth". He was so close. His shadow fell across it, and the rabbit flinched, sensing his presence just a little too late. Before it could bound away, Kendall pounced.

Huge canines ripped through flesh, tearing into fur and muscle. Kendall pulled away as soon as it stopped squiming in his teeth, warm blood pouring down his throat. His stomach did flips, but he stood up straight, holding his arms out as if to say, "I did what you want, now what?" The sound of clapping reverberated instantaneously off the trees from above.

"Very impressive, Kendall. I didn't expect you to do so well on your first hunt, especially after the start! And boy, the way you tore into that disgusting little rodent," he spat the words as Kendall wiped blood from his lip. Leave it to Dr. Shatner to hate bunnies. "Well, that was just... animal, wasn't it?" Kendall scowled at the bad pun. "And since you were a good boy and didn't fight me, you made this so much easier on yourself!" The blonde felt queasy at the words. He _had _made it easy, and, somehow, that made him feel like he was betraying his friends. But he had to do it! He had to stay strong and alive to take care of them. It wasn't like he could win against Dr. Shatner anyway. But to Kendall, that just made him feel weaker, despite his uninjured body.

The blonde jumped when white gloved hands tightened around each on of his arms and was lead out of the room, muzzle and front covered with blood and socks soaked through with mud. He struggled for a second, but somehow their touch shocked him, the electricity making him go limp. After a long maze of twisting, white (clearly Dr. Shatner's favorite color) hallways, he was thrown into his cage, which had fortunately been cleaned from when he had thrown up in it.

Kendall looked up to see James's scared, flickering eyes in the dark as he stared at the blood covering him, still thick, gooey, and fresh. "It's not mine," he grunted, and James nodded, the worried look still not leaving his face. Kendall turned around to see Carlos's and Logan's cage empty. He gulped and looked back at James. "Where are they?" he asked. James just shook his head, running his fingers through his already messed up hair. He looked so... young. It terrified Kendall.

"He took them together," James said, on the brink of tears, and horrible images already clicked into Kendall's head, "And I don't know what he's going to do with them."

**Hm... I think that classifies as a cliffy.**

**Okay, next time it's going to be very Carlos-y, because I feel like all I do is Kendall and Logan, and I'm bored with THAT, so yeah. BUT YAY, MORE OF THE BOYS!**

**GUYS! Just so you know, if you ever have a request for ANYTHING (by that I mean, doesn't have anything to do with this story) You can feel free to go for it! Just three rules, no slash (I can't be partial to any of the pairings, they're all too cute), romance in anyway (I stink at it), leave me a little wiggle room. I LOVE YOUR IDEAS!**


	15. Night Vision and Reflexes

**This freaking chapter has been deleted twice already. I am going to start crying. And when I'm done, I'm going to murder my mom. Oh yeah, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY! **

**Sorry if it's short, I'm getting frustrated.**

Carlos tumbled out of the cart after being brutally dumped onto the floor with Logan. He sat up and rubbed his eyes groggily, feeling an unfamiliar roundness to them. In confusion, he looked to Logan, whose were glowing yellow in the dimly lit room, and realized his must be doing the exact same thing. The Latino looked around the empty, white room, remaining unimpressed until a soft glimmer from the ceiling caught his attention. He looked up, and gasped, the numbing sensation of fear taking over his whole body.

Knives.

Countless blades hung above him, dangling precariously over his head and shimmering and reflecting off of every little bit of light in the room. Carlos looked over to Logan, scared, but the pale boy was too focused on what was overhead to notice. Suddenly, a loud cackle from the speaker system lining the room broke through their shock, followed by the Dr. Shatner's incessant laughter. Carlos quaked at the idea of the demented activity he was undoubtedly about to be forced to do, but it quickly channeled into anger. His fists balled at his sides. Despite not knowing what the crazed scientist was about to do, he was already mad. He gritted his teeth and let out a low snarl, animal instincts upping his aggression.

"Now, now, Carlos. Don't make such faces, this will be fun," came Dr. Shatner's mocking tone. "Besides," he said as an especially long dagger dropped down and pierced the ground directly in front of the Latino, "there are obvious ways to make you stop." Carlos gulped, face paling at the handle of the knife that was at eye level with him, sticking straight up. He immediately tried to quell his fury. "Today, we're just going to test your ability to see in poor lighting and your reflexes, so just dodge what you can." At this, Logan raised a finger in protest meekly.

"Couldn't you, I don't know," he said, chewing on his lower lip in anxiousness, "Use projectiles that weren't, say, lethal?" This evoked another obnoxious fit of laughter from the quite literally _mad_ scientist. Logan winced, and Carlos sent him what he hoped was a reassuring look. He loved Logan so much, and it hurt to see him so scared. Not just now, but ever since they had gotten there. He looked so... broken. It was tearing Carlos up inside.

"Think of them as a source of motivation," Dr. Shatner responded, and on that note, the last lights flickered out in the room, leaving the small, red bulb of the recording video camera in the corner as the only thing breaking up the darkness. There was a unnerving period of silence until the near silent sound of snipped fishing line filled Carlos's ears, sending him diving to the right in attempt to get out of the way-

* * *

James was ridiculously sick of being scared. He was absolutely tired of it, and it took him all of two minutes after realizing this to stop. Kendall wasn't the only stubborn one, and apparently James had enough will power to even control his own feelings. He started looking about the sterile lab with nothing else to do, and marveled at it's complete and utter lack of germs. Things started clicking in his brain, and he turned to Kendall and asked, thinking about bacteria, "Wouldn't it be crazy if we were all asexual, and whenever someone bumped into us, we'd have kids?" Kendall looked at him with a smirk and an arched eyebrow.

"I'd probably have, like, forty kids every two minutes, what with you guys always wrestling and grabbing me," he said with a laugh, despite the randomness of James's question. Honestly, the blonde was sort of freaking out about the whole rabbit thing, not because of the animal way he attacked it, but because of how much he wanted to do it again. Frankly, how much he loved the heavy feel of blood in his stomach was starting to disturb him. That's why he clutched to James's weird topic like it was the only thing between him and death itself. Because he wanted to forget about it. James pouted.

"We're touchy people! We can't help it!" he said with a yelp, sniffing indignantly. Then he started laughing despite him thought as a rather hysterical image popped into his head. "What if the harder you hit, the more babies you had?" he asked, doubling over and gasping for breath, hyperventilating he thought it was so funny. Kendall just shook his head with a small snicker.

"Like, if Carlos, say, head butted you," he paused as he winced, remembering how badly that hurt, "you'd magically give birth to sextuplets?" James nodded, nearly peeing himself in laughter, tears rolling down his cheeks, and it wasn't soon before Kendall had joined him, rolling on the floor of his cage at the ridiculous though of Carlos ramming into him, knocking him over the side of the orange couch as six babies popped out of him. He slammed his fist repeatedly on the ground as he laughed.

Leave it to James to make him laugh even during times like these.

* * *

Carlos had dodged the falling knife with ease, he had seen and heard it coming, and now it was sticking straight up and down the the spot where his feet just were. There was another short, almost plucking sound as another thread was cut, but this time Logan was the one to have to jump out of the way, straight into Carlos's arms. The Latino felt his heart beat a bit faster in shock, but he put an arm around Logan anyway. This time, the wait for the next knife to drop was much longer, and when it finally did, the boys broke apart quickly, leaving a lonely knife in their wake.

They started falling in quick succession, blades slicing into the white tile like butter. Carlos dove and swerved out of the way blindly, not knowing where he was going, just going _away._ It wasn't long before both boys were on complete opposite sides of the room. Carlos looked at Logan desperately, but stayed where he was, worried about running straight into one of the falling daggers.

Knife after knife was dropped, and soon they were going so fast, Carlos could barely think of where to go next, he couldn't think that far ahead fast enough. Only when they started to slow did he notice the nicks and slices lining his arms and shoulders, tears in the fabric of his sweatshirt where they snagged on it, blood staining the outsides of the larger ones. Looking over to Logan, he saw he wasn't any better off. Of course, he couldn't do anything about it when he did, because he still had to keep on the move and concentrate on the daggers up above. Blood dripped into his eyes, a stinging pain controlled every part of his body, but he ignored it, survival instinct kicking in.

They were forced to keep up at it for hours, after a while, stepping on the tops of fallen blades because there wasn't enough floor space to go anywhere properly. It was at this time that both boys regretted not having shoes or socks, the rounded handles digging into the arches of their feet. Thank goodness they were both creatures of balance.

After what felt like an eternity, the lights went up, and the the men in white came in. Their arms were yanked behind them as they were shoved into their nifty little traveling cage once more, electric currents pulsing through them at their attempt to resist. "Good job, mutants," came Dr. Shatner over the loud speaker as they were wheeled out, both whimpering in the pain they were finally allowed to acknowledge on their way back to their cages. They were never so happy to see their own, now almost homey, constricting metal bars before in their lives.

**Sorry for the random part in there with James and Kendall. That was sort of burning inside of me, and I needed a break anyway. So there you go. Sorry if it was awkward. I don't really like it, cause I feel like I keep leaving it to James for all the randomness and stuff...**

**Sorry for my non-existant updating. You could blame it on my complete and utter business with multiple birthdays, church, concerts, and the like, or you could blame it on my lack of self discipline. Whatever.**

**Guys, in case you have yet to hear (all you twitter followers probs know cause I keep complaining about it...) I fell off my roller blades and now my ENTIRE right leg is a big, bloody, disgusting mess. Not to mention the various bruises, scrapes, cuts, and road burns on my upper left leg, elbows, palms, tummy, right shoulder, chin, cheek, and right side/back. It was horrible. I had to blade back home all bloody and stuff, and then when I was all bandaged after an exceptionally painful shower, I fell down the stairs. Just. My. Freaking. Luck.**

**Ugh. OH! My BIRTHDAY is on Monday the 16th! I'm SO excited! My mom said she'll take me an a friend to the beach in the summer for it if I want! And believe me, I want.**


	16. Anatomy of a Zebra

**I am going for a world record of three updates today, so prepare for me to pretty much ignore all of you. No offense.**

**THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS I HOPE TO GET RIGHT NOW, CAUSE I MIGHT NOT SAY ANYTHING DIRECTLY TO YOU! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! **

James blew his bangs out of his face in a quiet frustration. All he really wanted to do was moan and groan about how aggravated he was, but he understood that Carlos and Logan probably wanted silence. Meanwhile, this was infuriating! He was so angry, he could tear his precious, precious hair right out of his head. What could possibly be so annoying as to drive James to such drastic measures?

He couldn't sit up straight.

Now, for all you people who consider this a minor problem, you clearly haven't been stuck in a cage for days at a time that you're too tall for. The best thing it could be compared to is when you're sitting in class, and no matter which way you sit, your butt still hurts and you can't get comfortable. You know, when you break your pencil on purpose just to have an excuse to get up and walk around for a minute? It's sort of like that, but more pain in your neck, and there's no option to make a break for the pencil sharpener.

So, just like Logan, James was almost glad to be crammed in that insufferable mobile cage for thankfully only his second time. Just so you know, the thing was ridiculously not fun to ride in. James for the life of him could not understand how a cart could jiggle so much down a hall so smooth. It rattled his bones, and he prayed they wouldn't be broken on the way back, knowing full well that they might be.

He was wheeled into a very bright room with glaring lights, so he was in a near constant squint, and dropped onto a stainless steel table. He was rather alarmed when he was cuffed into place, arms stretched out above his head and men in white huddled all around him. He started resisting, and kept at it for a while, until he realized nothing immediate was happening to him.

James let his head drop back on the table top with a thud, his tail flicking and twisting around his legs. _I have a tail,_ he thought bitterly, admittedly distressed about it. James was done caring about if he was about to be ripped open. He was honestly more concerned about how permanent this zebra situation was. It was already apparent that horsey-James was more of a donkey-James to the ladies, which didn't help to boost his self esteem any. Dr. Shatner had called him a freak, also. Now, James realized that the last person's opinion he should be caring about was that demented man-beast's, but he wasn't the kind of guy to easily let go of a comment like that. In fact, he was more the kid to cling onto it and let it rule over him for a couple months. He felt ugly, and that wasn't something he liked feeling.

Luckily, he didn't have to because that's when Dr. Shatner's white-covered minions decided to make their entrance. He watched them warily as they surrounded the table he was lying on. James was slightly unnerved when they removed his shirt, but all his questioning thoughts went away as one of the men quite literally sliced him open without introduction. He saw stars.

James's head lolled slightly as he tried to bite back pain and watch as a full, gloved hand reached into him, going so deep it covered his wrist. James almost gagged, but a firm squeeze on one of his organs interrupted him before he could get the chance. He fought his restraints to curl up into a ball and protect himself on instinct, but not even 'the fire' could do any good against the steel holding him in place. He choked on his gasps for air, lungs on fire with the pain enwrapping his entire body.

There was a loud tearing sound, and James cried out in pain. It felt like they were trying to force his appendix and his spleen to switch places. Sweat drenched his forehead, not that he noticed or cared, and his breath was ragged. He panted. Blood oozed from his open stomach and onto the table as white-hot pain filled his abdomen. His vision couldn't help but to spot and blacken around the edges. He fell hard into the land of unconsciousness.

When he woke up, he was wracking with a fever that had suddenly overridden his body. He fought the tremble taking control of him, and looked down to see a crudely sewn up H-cut and vomited at the sight. He lay in a cold puddle of his own blood alone, feeling dirty and, honestly, pretty violated. The metallic sent did nothing but add to his nausea as another sweat broke out over him. He lay for what seemed like an eternity, waiting for something to take him out of his misery.

Fire erupted in his veins as he was moved onto a stretcher after being left to his own in abrupt and utter agony for a while. He could have sworn they were purposefully bouncing him as they bumped along through the endless, swirling halls. Hope was quickly draining from the boy as he was wheeled into the room with his friends, for he realized there were no pain relievers to come. They tossed him into his cage and he let out a hiss of pain as he hit the ground. Meanwhile, his friends were looking at him with wide eyes. He offered a shakey smile, but it was weak, and he new it. Kendall cleared his throat.

"He said you have the autonomy of a horse-err... zebra, or whatever,' he said, and it was all James could do to nod in response. Kendall arched an eyebrow. "Are you okay?" he asked, succeeding in keeping the tremor out of his voice. James shook his head. Kendall mouthed an okay, and James saw Carlos and Logan perk up in their cages to look at him, most of the cuts having healed, some leaving long scars behind before fading out of the world yet again.

**Okay, there's one of three. ONE DOWN, TWO TO GO! Guys, yesterday my dog was hiding under my ottoman, and he sneezed. It was cute.**

**This was really badly edited, and I know that. (sigh, most of my stuff is) So I'll apologize now.**

**I feel like I've made James into my comic relief, which is unacceptable. Not that I don't think the kid is hysterical, but I just don't think that works for him in this case scenario. SO YEAH!**


	17. My Grandmother's Button Box

**Okay guys, this is important!**

**You guys all have to go read my lovely little friend BigTimeLoganLover's beautiful little story "Another 100 theme Challenge" And I know what you're thinking "Duh, Cheeky, late on the scene here, we all HAVE our favorite 100 themes," but this is one of the cutest things I have ever read. Like, gah, SO CUTE! Okay, so read it, alright? It's one of those stories that needs some love.**

Carlos shivered in his cage, absentmindedly tracing a particularly long scar on his leg as he looked at his three friends. They all seemed a little torn up, but that was to be expected. He just wished it didn't _have_ to be expected. He was sick of how uncertain everything had been lately. He couldn't even be sure of what _day_ it was, they had all blended into one and there was no telling how much he had slept through it.

He looked at Logan. His clothes were shredded identically to his; thin, red slashes coated his body from where the knives sliced through him. Carlos would do anything to take them away, hating how they stood out sharply against his pale skin.

James wasn't any better. His back was bare against the freezing metal floor, and he was obviously cold. They all were, but none of them had suffered as much blood loss as he had. There was a great, big H sewn shut on his torso. It was puffy and swollen and raw, and Carlos couldn't even fully comprehend how much he wished it wasn't there. He couldn't shake the visual of someone reaching into James out of his brain, and Dr. Shatner had provided him with quite a good one. The man had given them a lecture in excruciating detail on how they were going about tearing him open. It had been horrifying, and now here was James, gasping for breath and confirming their every fear.

Carlos was tired. He hadn't even thought about sleeping in what felt like hours because he knew nightmares were sure to plague him if he did. He was exhausted, and aching, and bruised, and cut, and scared, but he wasn't going to give in. Carlos had now intention of crying over this any more, and before he could stop himself, he blurted out, "Can we play a game?" Kendall perked up, offering him a primal grunt in acknowledgment.

"Which game?" James asked meekly, coughing and wiping the blood that speckled his hand off on his sweatpants. Carlos couldn't help but wince and flinch away, terror taking a momentary seize of him, but the excitement for actually doing something quickly won him back. He shrugged, not having thought it through in typical Carlos fashion. Luckily, Logan had it covered.

"Let's play My Grandmother's Button Box," he suggested, voice gravely from sleep. Carlos couldn't help but start clicking in happiness, one of his new habits, and nod vigorously. His friends sat up, Logan wrapping his tail around himself and batting at his nose, Kendall's ears still constantly twitching and listening for danger, and James letting out a snort. Carlos decided to allow himself to start.

"Inside my grammy's button box, I found a," he snickered, "potato skin." James and Kendall smirked, but Logan just offered him an eye roll and put a hand to his chin in thought. His ears flickered up when he got an idea.

"Inside my grandmother's button box, I found a potato skin, and a fresh box of crayons." At the look everyone gave him, he shrugged sheepishly. "What? Don't you guys like the smell of new crayons? It'll help me remember!" he said indignantly. Kendall scoffed, and took his turn.

"In _my_ grandma's button box, I found a potato skin," the blonde said with a grin, "a _scrumptious_ smelling box of fresh crayons, and... a lamp," he finished blandly, evoking a massive fit of giggles from all his friends. It was one of those times, where what was said wasn't all that funny, but there was this desperation crawling inside each of them to laugh so it magically became hilarious. It's like when you've been working on a school project that you haven't started and is due the next day for _hours _with your friends, and then one of them says something dumb like "polar bores" instead of "polar bears", and the next thing you know, you're all rolling on the floor and clutching your sides. Sort of like that, but these boys have been sitting in cages and tortured for what felt like eternity instead of just locked up in the library.

James gasped for breaths, and somehow managed to burst out through his laughter, "In my... grandmom's button box... I found... a 'tater skin... a fresh box of crayons... a lamp... and... and... and a nickel!" At this point, they were slamming their fists on the ground and holding their diaphragms. They kept it up long after it had lost it's nonexistent humor, milking every second of happiness they could get their hands on. They all really needed this. They continued playing the game, taking turn after turn and busting their sides every time. It ended all too soon.

They had kept it alive long enough so that it ended on Kendall's turn, him having "In my grandmother's button box, I found a potato skin, a fresh box of crayons, a lamp, a nickel, a toenail, a fishing lure, a squeeze bottle, an ostrich, three cucumber seeds, a baby pool, a pocket knife, a wet noodle, some socks, a jar of belly button lint, a root beer float, sunscreen, sizzors, and a lanyard," when hecut off their laughter, hearing footsteps outside. They looked at him with wide eyes that only grew bigger when shadows played under the crack of the door. All four boys' breath hitched as the lock clicked, and Dr. Shatner entered.

But he wasn't alone.

Three white lab coat wearing men followed him in, all classically carrying clipboards tucked under their arm with pens nestled into their monogramed pocket protectors. All but Kendall scampered to the back of their cage, burying themselves into the corner and trembling in fear before the zoologist. A low, guttural growl made it's way through Kendall's clenched teeth, his canines somehow glinting in the dim light. Dr. Shatner walked over to their cages, but instead of addressing them, he addressed his guests.

"So here we see my latest gene-splicing project," he began, soaking up the credit for mutating the boys, not that they would know the difference, "I, quite frankly, see potential in all of them for your purposes, but there's only one that's flawless for the job, which I'll demonstrate later, and that's the blonde one right here." The man smirked at Kendall, and took a long stride to stand in front of Carlos's cage. He bent down low and grinned at the Latino, sheer amusement burning in his eyes. The boy whimpered.

"You see, this one is extremely agile and equipped with extraordinary night vision; however, he lacks the brains to get the simplest tasks you'd require done," he informed them, and Carlos's self-confidence must have dropped at _least_ to down around his ankles and his face paled as it fell. Dr. Shatner moved next to Logan's cage, the metal bars quivering he was shaking so hard. The man slammed a fist onto the door and Logan flinched hard into the back wall, letting out a loud whimper he just couldn't bite back. "This one has the same traits as the other, but is, frankly, a 'fraidy cat'."

The other doctors laughed at this, scribbling on their clipboards as Dr. Shatner talked. They all shifted to James's cage, and he continued, "This one is fast and was able to endure extreme pain when we tested some other things, but he's not spliced enough to really get any job done." All that was left was Kendall, and the zoologist smiled warmly at him, to which the blonde snapped at him.

"Now this," he said with pride in his voice, "Is my greatest achievement. I only had to test him once, but I'm already sure that he's a complete and dominant hunting machine. He's all muscle, bulking up as if he's been on crazily effective steroids since his DNA was crossed, and he's completely ready to take down whoever you want him to for a price, of course."

A lightning bolt of fear streaked through all the boys, and their eyes bolted to Kendall. He wasn't being... sold away, was he? He couldn't be. It was impossible, they needed him! Before they could let the thought soak in, the conversation outside their confinements rolled along.

"Come now, one test? If I'm about to invest all out funds into this, I not only want to see him tested again, but I want to be there for it myself!" one of the unknown men spoke up. The doctor nodded and put his hands up to stop the onslaught of agreement sure to come.

"No worries, we can definitely manage that."

And without hesitation, Kendall was dragged out to be carted off somewhere yet again.

**Okay, so I'm so sorry I haven't written in a while. I've been busy, and for all of you who DON'T follow me on twitter (MCheekyBrunette by the way): I just got braces. So for the past couple days, along with all the Memorial Day weekend fun I've been drowsy on allergy and pain medication and watching That 70s show until my eyeballs bled (just kidding, didn't do it THAT long)**

**Anyway, by Tuesday, everything will have been updated at least once, hopefully twice. Aiming for twice, but I don't know how it'll go... I have a TON of homework.**


	18. Attack

**Okay... I am doing ALL my chapter stories starting... NOW! YAY! And then I have a few one shots, but then I'm cutting myself off. I'm going to FOCUS on How It Starts, How It Ends and finish it off. Then I'll only have three stories, and life will be easier. Um... yeah. So there's that. Plus! It'll be summer.**

**I apologize for my failure as an updater recently. Finals and whatnot. They're done on Thursday, though (Oh my gosh, school's done on THURSDAY! YES!) so expect a better job from me.**

Kendall's room was small. A long window overlooked him, revealing shadowed faces watching him. He rubbed at his ears irritably, tail twitching as he waited for... _something_. Dr. Shatner was quick to take him away from his friends, but was slow to actually do anything. He thought over what he had said.

Absentmindedly, Kendall rubbed his arm, feeling the hard muscle packed inside. Despite being completely satanic and cruel, the doctor was right about a couple things. It _was_ like he'd been injected with steroids. It wasn't like he was now suddenly the mutant version of Taylor Lautner, but he _was_ a wall. He was just muscular, not built, but it didn't matter. There was a raw strength forming in him that was still pretty scary.

Guilt washed over him. He was the only one of his friends who wasn't... feeble. James, Carlos, and Logan all looked so sickly and slight. Meanwhile, here he was with better muscle tone than James could even dream about. If Kendall was able to get close enough, Kendall had no doubt that he could reach around each of his friends wrists with his thumb and index finger. It wasn't his fault that Dr. Shatner refused to feed them, but Kendall didn't pay that any mind. He should be suffering, but he'd gotten the more endurable genes.

It was driving him crazy.

The hairs on the back of his neck stood up as Dr. Shatner's voice filtered into his room, muffled by the glass of the window. His heart leapt, but quickly settled. At least he would be able to get this whole thing over with, and anything was better than thinking about how weakened his friends were.

"He has the potential to be a machine," he said as if Kendall couldn't hear him. "I mean, he has a mind of his own, but we all know that can be broken." A sea of laughs followed, and Kendall wondered how many people were actually behind that little window. "Plus, his bloodlust controls him flawlessly. Watch."

With that, a door slid open and a small rabbit bounced into Kendall's room. Before he could even register what was going on, he was attacking. Thick teeth tore through still twitching flesh, and satisfaction rushed over Kendall. Raw meat sat heavily in his near receding stomach. He had been so hungry, and this felt so good. In a matter of too quick seconds, the rabbit had been stripped, marrow having been sucked from it's bones. There was a moment of silence as Kendall still gnawed away at the remains, wanting more. _What am I doing?_ the civilized part of his brain asked, but his body ignored it. He wanted this a little too much. Finally, voices picked back up in the room above.

"He's incredible!"

"Remarkable!"

"It's perfect!"

Various other enthusiastic responses were heard, but Kendall tuned them all out. What was going on with him? It was like he wasn't even in control anymore it was like... his... bloodlust. Dr. Shatner was right, _again_. Why was it that he seemed to know more about Kendall than he did himself? He felt like he was being picked apart for the world to see, and he was the only one not allowed to look. He was sick of this.

"Calm down," Dr. Shatner told the excited buyers with a laugh, "That isn't the best I have to show you."

With that, the lights flickered off, and Kendall was plagued in darkness, awaiting his next task.

* * *

Kendall didn't know what was happening. He was only aware of something pushing him along, guiding him, in the pitch black. Despite not being able to see, he could tell as he was handled into a big room, the sounds of his footfalls echoing off down the large, empty hall. He gagged when a cloth was shoved in his face. Kendall held his breath at first, paranoid from the last rag he had pressed up to him like this, but when he had no choice but to inhale, it was safe. He took in a familiar scent that he couldn't place.

He was only aware of one word, "catch", as his pupils dilated. He felt himself tear at the floor, waiting for the strong holds on his harms to be released. He had to move. He had to _kill_. He ripped at the hands holding him in place until they quickly let go.

Kendall took off like a bullet, taking in a trail of that same smell his brain had been too distracted to identify. He was in instincts hands. He didn't think about it, he just felt. The word "track" repeated somewhere in the back of his brain, covering all the thoughts telling him to stop. Kendall was moving; he was gone. This was it.

The scent started to fill him, growing stronger as he grew closer. Kendall sensed something in the dark in front of him moving, barely hearing it's footsteps over the sound of his snarling. His feet pounded as he ran blindly after his target. He was _there_. A final leap, and he threw out his hand, unknowingly allowing his nails to morph into claws. He slashed at his next meal, and was almost a little startled to find it tall enough to be right in front of him. He was also surprised to feel cloth hooking on his claws, but that didn't slow him.

Somehow, he had known it was going to be like this.

He pounced again and felt whatever he was attacking cripple beneath him. It squirmed, hissing, scratching, and swiping at him. Kendall ignored it's failed attempts to hurt him despite the thin sets of five cuts covering his arms. He just growled and found the joint of one of it's arms, grabbing and breaking it, destroying the threat. He did the same with the other.

There was nearly only hate and want as he found the creatures head, twisting his fist into it's fur on the top and slamming it into the ground. It's wiggling stopped beneath him. Everything part of his body was calling him to strike. He felt blood puddling around his hands, and Kendall bent down, relishing in his victory and rubbing his nose in it. This was _his _kill, and he felt great.

Kendall first nipped at the skin of one of the creatures arms, something holding him back from jumping down. Whatever this was, someplace in the back of his mind, it was conflicting him. He wanted nothing more than to sink his teeth in, but there was something stopping him. Eventually he couldn't help but rip into the fresh meat of his catch.

Blood swished in his mouth, and he was so far out of it, he didn't even feel nauseous. In fact, Kendall wasn't even sure he _would_ feel sick even if he _was_ acting normally. He gnawed on the shoulder of the beast, having only barely torn apart the rest of the arm. He hadn't hit bone, but Kendall hadn't needed to yet. He worked to the crook of the neck almost patiently, and that's when he was thrown back into "reality" at full force.

It was almost instant how fast Kendall threw himself off of his kill, how fast the lights turned on, how fast he threw up all of it's blood and flesh onto the floor. He took a shaky step toward the animal he had caught, and gagged again when he saw the face, hair matted with blood and arm shredded all the way to the wrist.

"Logan?"

**Haha, yeah. Sorry if that happened a little fast, but... ugh. I couldn't figure out how to make it any more cohesive, and you guys were getting antsy for it, so... there you go!**

**Hm... I want cherrios, and Matt Damon right now! (Yum, Matt Damon... I mean, cherrios...)**

**Sorry for that cliff hanger, btw.**


	19. Guilt

**Woah, guys, I haven't had a fact at the bottom in, like, two updates! I FEEL HORRIBLE!**

**Okay, in case you missed me blabbing about it before, it's absolutely VITAL to you're Logan angst FCMD HEALTH that you go read "Downhill From Here" by Mikkal. Like... see... I'm not playing. At all. I'm going to keep talking about it until you all have it on your story alerts and all that jazz, got it? IT'S SO AMAZING, IT NEEDS LOVE! **

Kendall reach out and nudged his bloodied friend, relief washing over him when Logan twitched and flinched away. His excitement was quickly dampened when guilt started creeping up into his stomach. He looked to Logan's gnawed up arm, still feeling bits of his skin stuck in his teeth. He fought the urge to vomit again, and leaned over him, relaxing at the sound of his shallow breaths. Kendall pulled away slowly and pulled his knees up to his chest, burying his face into his pajama pants. He tuned out, leaving everything behind and sobbing into his sleeve.

A swift kick to his side had him out of his funk. He looked up, startled, into the _very angry_ face of Dr. Shatner. Right in front of him. Alone. "Do you know what you just cost me? Cost this corporation? Do you know what will happen once Ground hears about-" He didn't even have a _prayer_ of finishing. Kendall immediately pounce up and tore at his throat, but this time it wasn't on instinct. This time, it was intentional. This time, it was _personal_. He didn't stop lunging at him even when he was restrained.

A shock buzzed through his system, and Kendall hung limp between two men in white, their blank faces turned toward the evil scientist. Dr. Shatner whipped blood from his cheek and neck, not even wincing in pain. He merely glared down at the wolf boy and gave orders. "Haul them away and stick 'em in their cages. I don't even want to look at them," he snarled animalistically, almost an exact, unintentional mimic of Kendall. His henchmen obliged and dragged the two boys off, thankfully bothering to wrap some gauze around Logan's bleeding head and arm, tearing off the rest of his tattered shirt.

* * *

Kendall woke up groggily to the sound of sobbing and looked over to see Logan bawling in the crate next to him, huddled impossibly close to Carlos's cage. Guilt once again spiked his heart, and he felt eyes burning through the back of his head. He turned to face the meanest, most intimidating, ferocious looking James he'd ever seen in his entire life. Maybe it was the animal DNA coursing through his system, but the zebra boy looked _fierce._ It didn't even matter that James was thinner and weaker. Kendall had no doubt that James would rip him apart if give the chance. "You did that?" he asked more like a statement. Kendall nodded, and James just shook his head, turning away.

The blond turned toward his other two friends and immediately looked away after taking in their faces. Betrayal was written all over Carlos's face, and it pained him. You know you've done wrong when Carlos gives you _that_ look. Kendall never had to see it until now. Logan, meanwhile, was a mess. He wasn't mad at him, just sad, and it tore Kendall apart. Logan should be screaming! He should be glaring! He should be looking at him like James had, but he _wasn't_. He was just... scared. Kendall could take mad. He could take angry. He couldn't take fear.

His ears flickered up as the sound of banging doors echoed down the hall. He got on his feet, crouching in his cage as Dr. Shatner entered the room, an evil glare on his face. He bent down to look into Kendall's eyes, reflecting the same craze shining in his own. "Hungry, freak?" The wolf boy didn't even respond, just kept staring him straight on. He could hear all three of his friend's stomaches rumble beside him, and couldn't help but notice how Logan had tried to quell his crying, now only sniffling with the occasional gasp next to him. His tear stained cheeks shone in the dimly lit room. "Here's dinner. Even bad doggies have to eat."

With that, he popped open the door to his cage and threw in a... cat. Kendall tried to resist. He really did. But Dr. Shatner whispered that word in his ear, "catch", and he fell helpless. It wasn't more than two seconds after did he feel fur tickle the roof of his mouth. He tried to stop, but this time he wasn't chewing up Logan. He was eating his enemy. A cat. It felt _right_, and this was _his _kill. He downed it's flesh in lest than three minutes.

Carlos was horrified, his jaw on the ground and his eyes wide and scared. If James hadn't been mad before, he was absolutely furious now. Kendall had never been more sure someone was capable of ripping through the steel bars of a cage in his life, and he'd seen The Hulk in action. There was so much raw fury burning in James's eyes alone, he didn't want to think about how he'd use that if they every came face to face. Logan was just... awful. Kendall could imagine it was a little like seeing what could have happened to him, happen to his, like, brother or something.

He had never felt more guilty in his life.

Last time, he hadn't known what he was going after. This time he did, and he knew the consequences, but he just couldn't stop. Logan literally fell to the floor of his cage and gripped at the bars, struggling to get to Carlos, but not succeeding. Not even close. Kendall felt horrible with every right to be.

Dr. Shatner left with a laugh, happy to get his revenge after Kendall made him look stupid in front of his potential buyers.

A sudden thought dawned on Kendall. Now that he had ruined even his chance of being sold, what was going to become of them?

**Shortish, but I want to move on. Plus, it's kind of a filler chapter, and there's a lot to take in, you know? Yeah. So there you are.**

**FACT: about 2,700 photos are taken every second. SAY CHEESE!**


	20. Rescuing A Monster

**Okay, so... Last week was tough for a certain cheeky brunette, as I'm sure a good deal of you know, and if you didn't, then that's why it took me so long to update! However, I DON'T want to talk about it, so now you know, let's forget about it.**

**On a happier note, I'm totally in love with that show Marriage Ref. It's SO funny, I could die. If you haven't seen it, I feel like you should do that about now-ish. (Unless you're to young. TV 14, guys. Word of warning) **

**You know who I miss? Aaron Carter! HE WAS A BOSS! And then he went to rehab for everything, apparently. He got out recently, but now he's too old to throw out another beast thing like "Aaron's House Party". Sob. He was my 6-year-old crush... If you're lost, try "I WANT CANDY!"  
**

**Now, on with the story.**

Days. Long, lonely days passed by with only Logan's cries breaking the silence. Eventually, though, even that slowed to a stop, the feline dropping to the floor of his cage, back against the edge and terror overtaking his body and willing him to allow himself to waste away. He simply stared up at Kendall, his eyes wide and unseeing, but fear written across every part of them. Kendall felt sick to his stomach, wanting to avoid his blank, heavy stare but rendered helpless to it due to his confinements. He had messed up _so_ bad, and the look he was receiving from Logan was more than enough to send complete and utter self-loathing to every part of him. Kendall hated it all. He was a monster, a freak.

Dr. Shatner would have been a joy at this point. Even torture would be better than this unbearable silence. He could see James in his cage, on the verge of bubbling over but holding his tongue. That was one thing he could be thankful for. Kendall knew he deserved to be called every single thing James had on the tip of his tongue. He would take it and ask for more, but Carlos and Logan... They didn't need to hear everything James probably had to say. If anything, his yelling would probably scare them even more, which wouldn't be good for anyone. Kendall knew it. _James_ knew it, but it was evident in his expression that he wanted to get a word at him before they died, if the opportunity ever became available. It was looking less likely every day.

It was hard to tell time without a watch or light, for that matter, but being a crossbreed sort of helped them out. Animals, apparently, had great internal clocks. From what Kendall could tell, it had been at least three weeks since he'd been kidnapped, not accounting for how long they'd been unconscious and also that long since the other guys had eaten anything. With Dr. Shatner not coming to "visit" them, Kendall figured they'd die of starvation, if not from anything else. Blood loss was sort of an issue for them too, after all. Carlos's wrists were scarily thin, his cheeks hollow.

Kendall was wary of Carlos; he didn't know exactly what was going in the Latino's head. He'd sometimes catch pitying glances from him, other times angry glares, but most often just complete and utter confusion. It wasn't a secret that Carlos was able to pick up on how other people were feeling, but when it came to his own emotions, the kid was a mess. He was curled up in a ball, something new for him, but probably just came with all the other animalistic behavior he had accumulated. Kendall wanted to say something to one of them, to reach out, but he was scared. Who knew how they would react to even just his voice?

Hours rolled by. A clang. The first sound they had heard in a week. Someone was coming. Kendall immediately perked up in his cage, desperate for _any _type of escape. A glare from James wiped the smile from his face. "You better hope they kill you," he said, voice thin and raspy from not talking in so long, "Because you can run as far as you want, but I won't rest until I'm finished with you." Kendall felt a pang of fear pierce his heart. Normally, he would scoff in the face of such a challenge, but the anger James held behind it was enough to make his cage rattle while he shook. Repent wasn't a strong enough word for what Kendall was going through.

Shouts from the hallway had his heart pounding, and at this point, even Logan was sitting up in curiosity. Part of Kendall was happy he had finally moved, proving he was at least somewhat sane, but most of him was just worried about what was happening. The men in white had never made said a word, so what was out there?

Luckily, they were only in the dark for less than a minute before an alarming amount of men with huge guns burst through the door. They were momentarily horrified before they noticed the "S.W.A.T." logo on their bulletproof vests. Hope rocketed through each boy's heart, and they gripped the bars of their doors, begging to be let out. Kendall whimpered and panted, dying to be released. Beside him, Carlos and Logan were both purring so hard their cages it quaked. James was letting out a large assortment of whinnies and neighs, thrashing against the metal grid surrounding him. They all wanted out, and that's just what S.W.A.T. had intended to help them do. Locks were broken, and the boys burst out. What happened next broke Kendall's heart.

Logan leaped onto Carlos, jumping on him and gripping him tight behind the neck. The Latino was turned around, Logan putting him in between himself and Kendall and keeping a nervous eye on him. Before Kendall could reach out and apologize, James was between them, arms crossed and anger etched across his face. This happened in what felt like milliseconds, before their rescuers took them away.

Officially, the US government wasn't acknowledging the boys as crossbreeds. In that, after they were rescued their existence as mutants and their kidnapping became Area 51 material, completely secret. The United States was antsy to get rid of them and forget the whole thing, having a veterinarian check them over on the flight back home, apparently they had made it to Argentina, and letting them return to normal life without a word. The boys were left in the dark about their rescue, but they didn't care. They were going home, and that's all they ever wanted. Of course, the excitement of being saved didn't stop the plane ride from being set in complete silence.

* * *

Mrs. Knight didn't know what to feel when she opened the door to her four sons, collared and tagged with care instructions out in the hall. There was, of course, overwhelming joy and relief at having her babies home again, but also shock and horror at how scarred and hurt they were, not to mention their new parts. Gustavo had told her he had someone mess their DNA a bit, but she didn't know... Stripes? Tails? Teeth? Really? It was all she could do to not faint then and there, and even so, her legs still felt like jelly. She let them in, trying to call for Katie, but her voice wouldn't work.

Only after she was finally able to talk again, did she notice how... off they were acting. Logan was strung around Carlos, looking terrified as the Latino just held him back, eying Kendall warily. James seemed to be furious, a noticeable protective glint in his eyes as he kept a close distance to the shorter half of Big Time Rush. What was the most unnerving to her, was the way her biological son seemed to be slinking away from them, literally with his tail between his legs. He looked so guilty, and that scared Mrs. Knight.

Because never in her life had she seen James so hostile.

Never in her life had she seen Logan so scared.

Never in her life had Carlos looked so confused.

And _never_ had she seen _any _of the boys look guiltier than her Kendall did right now. They weren't perfect friends, though they certainly gave it their best effort, and there had been cheating, meddling, and screw ups in their past. Girlfriends had been kissed, limits had be tested, boundaries had been pushed, but this much raw emotion? From all of them? This didn't happen all at once. At least, not with them anyway. She let out a puff of air, putting a gentle hand on Kendall's shoulder and asking "Honey, what did you do?" His head whipped up at her, eyes watery and scared. He pulled away.

"I..." he trailed off, looking first at his friends and then to his toes. "I'm a monster," he told her, and rushed off, bolting out of the apartment. She wanted to chase after him, he had been gone for almost a month, and she hate the idea of letting him out of her sight again, however, it was obvious her other boys needed her, too. She gently took their collars from their necks, gasping a little when she saw the burn mark that had been hidden under Carlos's. She tried to keep a strong face up as she took in how thin they were, and discovered the IV's stowed away in the backpack each boy had on their shoulder. They had been given anything they'd need to take care of themselves "out of the public eye" by the FBI, along with clothes, shoes, and food.

Mrs. Knight, being the kind mother she was, decided not to question them on what had happened just yet, especially as they hadn't said anything since they'd gotten back home. She, of course, had endless questions about where they had been and how they got back, but something inside her had her keeping quiet. "Why don't you guys just go to bed?" she asked, and the three nodded with as much enthusiasm as their broken, worn out bodies could muster. They gave her weak smiles and headed off to their rooms.

_What happened to them?_ she wondered.

**Humf. This took me six hours, so please don't hate it!**


	21. I'm Not Mad

**Hello little lovies! I'm so sorry about last update, loves, but it had to be done! Now, however, I can do something new!**

**I AM GONNA SHOW YOU WHAT I MEAN! I AM GONNA LOVE LIKE YOU'VE NEVER SEEN! YOU ARE GONNA LIVE LIKE YOU USED TO DREAM! THIS IS YOUR NEW SONG! -shout out to Rainboots for being the best person in the world and allowing me to listen to my new favorite song "Don't Get Comfortable" by Brandon Heath.**

**Honestly, Brandon Heath is the only person I want to listen to right now, and this ENTIRE chapter was sort of put to "Don't Get Comfortable" by him... so... yeah. It's hopeful and cute, and you might wanna give it a listen as you read. Just a thought...**

Carlos Garcia stared up at the ceiling, Logan curled into his waist and trembling as he slept. He had one arm draped over the taller boy's shoulders, and the other propping up his head. His thoughts drifted from James to Kendall to Logan and back to Jame as the clock read 3:42am. He rolled over to face Kendall's empty bunk. Worry rushed through his veins, and he eyed the door warily. It was late. Kendall should be home, but he wasn't.

Because he was a monster.

Carlos didn't understand that. That's what Kendall had said he was, and James seemed to agree completely. Logan, however... well, Logan just seemed scared of him. All those things seemed to add up right, but it refused to click as the truth in Carlos's brain. He couldn't just give up on Kendall, even when everyone else had. It was like that time when everyone but Logan, even himself, had decided he couldn't pass geometry, or when everyone but James thought he wouldn't get a date to their freshman Homecoming, or when everyone but Kendall figured he'd never be able to block a goal that one hockey season. There was something about Kendall that made Carlos believe he wasn't the monster he thought he was. They had been through too much for him to truly believe that.

Carlos slipped his arm out from under Logan, and crawled out of his bed. He paused in the door frame as he left the room, looking back and feeling guilty about abandoning his terrified friend, but he had a feeling Kendall needed him just as much as Logan did. Cool air hit his face as he walked out onto the roof. He wasn't sure why he had been drawn up there, but howling from the other side of the air conditioner box told him he was in the right place. His feet crunched on the gravel coating the top of the building, a full moon set low in the sky. He rounded his way to Kendall, unsurprised to see his tear-stained cheeks.

"Hey, buddy," he said quietly, sitting down and letting out a little 'oof' when Kendall pounced onto him, squeezing the air out of his lungs with a tight hug. Carlos patted his back. "You're not a monster," he whispered, "you were just broken by one." Kendall let out a cry, but his tail shook happily. He had really needed a friend, and Carlos was happy to be one for him. The blond spoke choppily.

"He... He_ hates_ me... It's all my-my fault... I can't..." he looked up at him in a way that scared Carlos, in a desperate way, "What can I do?" The Latino floundered for a minute, not sure of what to say and watching as the hope was sucked from Kendall's eyes. He wasn't a leader. He wasn't good with words. He wasn't- no. Suddenly, everything Carlos knew about himself was washed away, and an overwhelming sense of, not so much determination, but _love _washed over him. Here was Kendall, wrapped up in his arms needing... something, and Carlos wasn't going to let him crumble because he couldn't find the right things to say. Kendall didn't have anyone but him right now, and Carlos was _going_ to be all he needed, for as long as he needed.

"Kendy," he said, grabbing his shoulders as he had started to turn away, "He doesn't hate you. He's just... he's really scared, but you don't have to worry, okay?" he asked, Kendall eyeing him uncertainly. Carlos pinched his sides. "Oh, come on. Logan knows he can trust you, you just have to wait for him to realize it. I'll admit, he does have a good reason to be this freaked out, but he loves you just as much as I do, man. He won't leave you hanging." Kendall shook his head and pushed him away. For a minute, Carlos thought he didn't believe him, but then Kendall spoke.

"I was talking about James," he said, and the Latino's heart fell. He didn't exactly know how to reassure him on that note without it being an obvious lie. James was quick to get worked up or emotional about small things. I mean, he called the FBI over his hair falling a bit flat. So, when big stuff happened, he was definitely one to hold a furious grudge. It's not like he was mean or bitter, just... passionate. Kendall himself could understand that, Carlos knew, but recently fights and feelings were far more serious than they used to be. He sighed and wrapped an arm around Kendall's shoulder, thinking and watching absently as the moon let the sun take over, pink filling the sky. He rubbed his eyes wearily.

"He'll come around," he said eventually, doubting it's truth. The look Kendall gave him said he was thinking the same thing. Carlos just laughed and pulled him into a nuggie, letting out one of those little chatter-giggles he had going on. Kendall growled playfully, tail wagging fast. He squirmed and knocked Carlos to the ground, panting happily, despite not needing to. Carlos chittered again and wiggled away. He yawned and remembered how tired he was. "I think it's time we went to sleep," he suggested, heading inside and listening to the rocks crunching behind him as Kendall followed.

* * *

James woke up to Logan staring at him. He was kneeled next to his bed, cat eyes unblinking in the dark. James squinted at the clock and bit back a groan as he realized it was about four in the morning. James was as happy with being up right now as he would be after gouging out his eyes and swallowing glass, but he didn't care about that, when he realized how scared Logan looked. "What's wrong, Loges?" he asked, and he batted at his sheets.

"Can I sleep with you?" he questioned, his voice gravelly from disuse. He hadn't said anything since... well, probably since he had choked out "Kendall" between sobs as he cradled his shredded arm what felt like ages ago. James nodded, lifting up the covers. He let out a satisfied snort when Logan circled, tail brushing his face, and tucking up into a ball by his side. A thought struck him, and his voice broke through Logan's contented purring.

"Why'd you have to ask?" he wondered; the paler boy, but not by much since James had went a month without sunlight, stirred by his side. The whites of his eyes were bright green, his pupils like slits. It was unnatural on his face, but then... not much about them was natural anymore anyway. Logan's face twisted up, and he definitely took his good time in answering. James fought sleep, his head dipping as he tried to stay awake for his friend. Eventually, he sat up and rolled Logan over,e, and kept himself awake by massaging all the tension in his muscles away. "Come on, Logie. What's going on?" The shorter boy let out a throaty noise under his touch.

"I thought you might be mad at me..." he trailed off, his face looking relaxed for the first time in ages as James worked on his shoulders. His hands faltered due to the shock accompanying the statement, but he shook it off quickly. His eyebrows knit together as he tried to piece together what could have possibly made Logan think that, but gave up.

"Why?" he asked, using his elbow to dig into a particularly bad knot between his shoulder blades. Logan purred happily, despite their conversation, and arched his back up towards him, a smile splayed across his face. It was definitely a welcome sight to James, having missed seeing Logan not quite so... terrified, as he had been lately.

"Because you're mad at Kendall and I thought-"

"Stop right there," James told him, thumbs circling into his back. "Logan, the only thing that me being mad at Kendall has to do with you, is that he was the one to start it by hurting you. The only person who's done anything wrong here is Kendall, who literally _tore you apart_. That's _not_ okay, and it's _not_ redeemable, but the last thing I want for you to do is feel like I don't love you as much as I do because of it. Kendall _ate_ you, man. Don't be scared because I've got you, buddy, but I don't want you to let yourself get hurt by that _monster," _he spat, somehow allowing what was supposed to be a reassuring talk turn into a rant about how much he couldn't stand that _beast _he used to call his leader.

"James, I don't think-" Logan started, but was cut off when a smiling Carlos and Kendall walked through the door, arms wrapped around each other's shoulders. Awkwardness settled between them as they noticed their semi-compromising position. Logan looked incredulous after realizing Carlos ditched him for Kendall and shaking in the presence of the blonde. Carlos seemed sheepish over leaving and jealous of James taking over for him. Kendall just appeared beyond scared of both James and Logan, understandable knowing their pasts. James, meanwhile, couldn't hide the sheer fury burning inside of him and glared at Kendall, if looks could kill, ghost Kendall would already be searching for some duck tape to put his body back together after James's stare went nuclear on him.

Reluctantly, the two just entering boys took to their beds, each squirming in guilt. Kendall from what he had done, and Carlos from the long-since grown cold empty spot on his bed next to him.

**Rather slashy, but... whatever. This took me forever. Boxing, God stuff, How To Train Your Dragon... my life feels very busy. **

**Hehe. I was reading a Teen Titan fic as I wrote this (I'm aware that didn't help the speed of this being posted, but it was SO good!) and it was crazy going back and forth.**

**FACT: Snails have teeth!**


	22. Mine

**Grrr. I have so many things to write before I go on Vacation...**

**Gah. BUT GUYS! Seriously, I'm going on vacation for a WEEK, and then I'm teaching day camp for Friday through Sunday, so there won't be much hearing from me, okay? It's as important as last trip, only I have time to write before this one. Okay?**

**This is SUPER animal traity. I feel like I pull it out a lot when they're angry... yeah. **

Life in 2J was growing considerably more awkward as time went on. Only Carlos was talking to Kendall, Mrs. Knight kept asking questions they didn't have the answers to, Katie avoided them like the plague, and the IV labels with animal names on them were enough to make anyone uneasy. Logan had never been more uncomfortable in the apartment. Not even when James has kissed Camille had it been this weird. He was currently sitting on the orange couch, getting his butt kicked by Carlos in Mario Kart (It's a quality game, okay?), when Kendall walked in the room.

The hairs on the back of his neck stood straight up, and he inched closer to Carlos until he was tucked up in the shorter boy's side. He felt an arm wrap around his waist, and looked up to see the Latino beckoning Kendall over. Logan's spine stiffened, his muscles all tensing and ready to sprint as far away as possible. If Carlos wasn't holding him tight, he would have been long gone, but it was a bit to late to shake him off as Kendall sat down on the coffee table in front of him. His heart beat sounded in his ears, and he couldn't breathe when the blonde put a hand on his knee.

"I won't hurt you..." he told him as if just saying so made Logan believe it. It was nearly impossible to tear his eyes away from Kendall's hand, but once he did, he was shocked to find tears welling in the taller boy's eyes. "I'm so sorry, Logie... I didn't know it was you, and he told me to, and I couldn't stop, but I did, and I tried, and I'm so, _so_ sorry, I hope you ca-" he cut off as Logan suddenly hugged him. He had been terrified to do it, and he almost threw up as Kendall hugged him back, but he had to make sure he knew that he trusted him. No matter how scared of him Logan got, he'd never not trust Kendall.

Carlos, luckily, seemed to sense how afraid Logan was, and broke them up, hoping Kendall would overlook the petrified expression on the other boy's face. The blonde squirmed and then left the room abruptly, mumbling another apology as he left. Overall, Carlos considered the encounter a success, which was good. They could use a win for once. Of course, James thought otherwise.

"Excuse me?" he said, arms crossed and eye brow raised like a ticked off teenage girl. The striped boy was standing under the swirly slide's balcony, wearing a very territorial posture. A bit of raw fury flared up in Carlos, but he quickly quelled it. James just wanted Logan safe, that's what this was about, and he of all people could understand that. Of course, that didn't stop him from making Logan his. He calmly looked into his hazel eyes, his arm re-finding it's place around Logan's waist protectively. Carlos's tail wafted curled around his shoulders, and James read the signs. _Mine_. Well, not if he had a say in it. "What are you _doing_?" he asked. Carlos shrugged, although it was painfully obvious.

He was claiming Logan.

Speaking of, the little genius looked extremely uncomfortable. He looked to his toes and batted his nose with the back of his hand. "I think I'm going to go read in our room..." he said quietly, scurrying off. Before he could get by, James circled him, stating Logan as his own also. In James eyes, Carlos wasn't fit to take care of Logan anymore. Not after leaving him alone in the night, favoring Kendall, and letting the beast itself near him. Those weren't things James classified as "okay", and there was no way he was going to let it keep happening. Carlos thinking he could have Logan? That was almost laughable.

"I think it's time to move on, Jay Jay," he said, bordering on the edge of condescending and meaning it in more ways than one. See, Carlos didn't like the idea of Logan being with anyone but him. He hadn't ever liked it, and with the added territorial instincts flushed into his system, he was feeling more than a bit petty. James had to realize that he wasn't sharing anymore.

"No, I think it's time for _you_ to make a _decision,"_ he countered, eyes narrowing. He flipped his bangs back and forth much like a horse would it's mane. He was angry, no question about it. "It's the he-demon or Logan. Choose wisely," he said bitingly, closing in on the end. This was Carlos's last chance to do the right thing in his eyes, and there would be consequences if he got it wrong. The Latino just let out a tiny laugh.

"Both," he answered with a small shrug, "and you should too, James." His eyes held a seriousness James had yet to see; a smirk played on his lips. Carlos wasn't about to let James toss Kendall out with the trash, and he also didn't have any plans to let him tear Logan away from him. Frankly, Carlos wanted everyone in the apartment as an alliance. Well, everyone minus James. He'd been getting on his last nerve lately.

"That's not an option," James said coldly, and Carlos wasn't sure who he was talking for, but he didn't really care. As James turned his back and stormed off, he balled his fists, clenching his jaw tight. Why couldn't James see that it _was_ an option? There was more than one answer to everything, more than _his_ answer, so why couldn't he see it? Why couldn't he? It was just so infuriating, and it was _killing_ Carlos to see two of his friends so... hurt, and he didn't know if he could fix them alone. Why couldn't James just forget about being mad at Kendall for even just a couple hours if only just to help Logan at least?

James was hurting Logan about as much as Kendall was, and he just couldn't see it.

He couldn't see anything.

**Dude, I replaced the last chapter for BIDs and... I don't know. I guess people don't get alerts for that, cause no one's reviewed and I feel like a total loser...**

**FACT: Fewer people live in Wyoming than any other state. If you're not astonished by that, go open a tab, google a map of the states, and compare the size of Rhode Island to Wyoming. Or... any other North Eastern State and Wyoming.**


	23. Getting It Out There

**Oh gosh... I'm so sorry. I definitely should have updated this, like, six weeks ago... yeah. Not good. In fact, I actually MEANT to write it last week (I so had every intention) but then work came. Again. I don't know if you guys know, cause I got the acceptation letter in November (I came to FF in December...) but I applied and got into this REALLY intense school starting this year, and all my time has sort of became my teachers'. **

**BUT I'M WRITING NOW! And soon this will be done. So don't worry.**

Kendall was downright terrified. He had _no _idea where the lines were drawn, _no_ idea who was on what side, and _no _idea what he was going to eat for breakfast. Okay, so maybe that last one didn't seem so important, but he was having a major craving for bacon... raw, and that didn't seem like the best idea to him. He'd been avoiding meat like it carried the plague the last few days, freaking out that it would have some full-moon-like effect on him and drag out his inner werewolf. It wasn't on his bucket list to eat his best friend. Twice.

He was staring into the depths of the refrigerator, thinking about more than just cereal or bacon, when a voice broke through the clouds surrounding his head. "You know... the door is clear. You can keep it closed." Kendall whipped around, more startled than he would have been previously. Even with his heightened senses he hadn't noticed anyone else in the room, which wasn't something that usually happened anymore. His breath caught in his throat when he turned to see Logan standing behind him. "You can't tell off Jett and then do the same thing!" The words were said teasingly, but Kendall wasn't sure where he stood with Logan at the moment.

On the one hand, Logan had _hugged_ him. People who hate you don't just give you hugs for fun. Also, people who potentially hate you don't usually go and give you nice, long, meaningful hug because they want to hate you _more. _On the other hand, Kendall had seen the terrified look Logan had given him, and it had been _days_ since that had happened. James had plenty enough time to get to the shorter boy and change his mind about that whole "huggy lovey" thing they had. He wasn't prepared for this conversation, and it must have shown on his face because Logan was looking at him really weird. "Kendall... are you okay?" The blond coughed.

"Yeah, just... wait, what were you saying?" he asked, feeling hot for some reason. Logan knitted his eyebrows together and tilted his head.

"All the cold air is getting out..." he said, trailing off and pointing to the still open refrigerator door. Kendall flushed and quickly slammed it closed. He took a breath and decided to give Logan a good look. Upon closer inspection, he realized the pale boy looked about as scared as he did. He was subconsciously fingering the bandages still wrapped around is rapidly healing arm. His ears were pressed down and out a bit, his tail twirling close to his body. His eyes were open wide and shining, staring at him with uncertainty. "Listen... We need to talk."

Ah, everybody's least four favorite words.

"It's just... back in that room... in the dark... I just-"

"I'm really sorry," he said blurted suddenly, cutting and plunging into another apology, "Look... I hurt you. I didn't mean to, and it wasn't truly my fault, but... I did. And it doesn't matter who injected what into whose blood stream or who ordered who to do what. I hurt you. I could have killed you. Logan... I know I'm dangerous, I know I'm scary, but... I don't think I can handle _this," _he said, fisting his tail with both hands, "without you. Like, I need my friendships, Logan. Now more than ever. I know I don't deserve it, under no circumstance do I want to scare you or put you out of your comfort zone, but I'm scared too, Logan and... and I need you." Kendall's gaze fell to the floor, too nervous to look into his friend's eyes. He didn't want to see the rejection or, even worse, the fear in them. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his sleeve.

"Kendall..." Logan said, voice hoarse as he held back tears, "You scare the crap out of me." Kendall shuddered, not wanting to listen to the rest of what Logan had to say. He tried to shuffle past him, but and arm around his torso stopped him, and Logan was hugging him again. "But I need you, too," he said, voice high with emotion. Kendall fought tears, hugging the smaller boy's too-thin torso with all his strength, never wanting to let go. He bent down, stuffing his face into the crook of the shorter teen's neck.

"F-forgive me," he managed to choke out, his body shaking. Logan laughed through the emotion threatening to overcome him.

"I forgave you before you even went through with it," he said, only causing Kendall to cry harder in his arms.

* * *

James glared at Carlos from the upper bunk. The latino could feel his eyes piercing through his skull as he read through his twelfth comic book of the evening. He smirked, "I'm not letting them go!" he said in a singsongy voice, making James growl. Zebras don't growl.

"Well, then you're a moron. You can't possibly think that picking an animal over an actual human could be considered a good idea." Carlos sighed, throwing down Superman and turning to face James. He figured super-heroes didn't have to deal with this complete idiocy. Even the Joker acted more sane than James had been lately. He wrapped his feet around the bar of the bed above him, hanging upside-down with his hands gripping the mattress below, his striped tail twisting around his waist.

"There's about a million things wrong with that, but I'll name the worst two. First, you're about as much of an animal as Kendall is. If Maximum Ride is anything to go by, then 2% each for all of us. Second, I'm not picking anyone over anyone else. I'm choosing _both_, which you can't seem to get your head around." James huffed, and Carlos just shook his head.

"You only know that cause Logan told you," he said, eyes narrowed more impossibly. Carlos crossed his arms.

"I never claimed to be a reader."

"You know what you're problem is?" James asked, leaning over the railing of his bunk and staring down at his hanging roommate. "You can only see the good in everyone." Carlos arched an eyebrow, and James bristled. "Don't give me that look, that's a _bad_ thing. That's why those girls who hate animal testing are always the ones to get raped or kidnaped. They see a guy on the street and they're like 'Oh! He can't be that bad! He probably just needs a bowl of soup made with love and sugar and spice and stuff!' and the next thing you know they're being abducted. And then they're hurt, and they're torn up, and they don't look at you or anybody else the same anymore because they're so freaking scared." James was getting more and more hysterical as he went. "And it sucks because all you want is for them to feel good again, but that's not an option. And it's not fair how people tell you 'everything's going to be fine' or 'it's not that bad' because they don't _see_, Carlos! They don't see how bad it really is! They can't feel it!"

Carlos got the feeling that they weren't talking about some poor girl getting attacked any more. "James-"

"_No!" _he shouted, cutting him off. "No, Carlos! That might be fine for you, but it's not fine for me, and it's not fine for Logan! I'm not going to let you hurt him again! Cause if you're friends with the kidnapper, then you're not just a stupid girl who trusts that dark guy in the alley! You're her stupid best friend telling her to ignore her stupid female intuition or whatever and making her go down to see the stupid guy who only wants to use her and throw her away! WHICH IS _STUPID_ AND NOT OKAY!" he shouted, the anger in the air palpable. Carlos gulped.

"You're talking about Logan?" Carlos asked, feeling unsure. James just glared down at him again, jaw tense and lips drawn tight, clearly done talking. But that's okay. Carlos was just getting started. "James... I'm not going to let Logan get hurt again. I would rather throw myself in front of a bus than see you, or Logan, _or_ Kendall get hurt. But you've got to understand that Kendall isn't some creepy guy in an alley way. He's our _best friend. _Our _leader._ And he feels more guilty than you can imagine.

"I know you feel like what he did can't be redeemed and that an apology doesn't make up for it, but at least he's _trying._ It's practically killing him to not be close to you anymore. You guys were... you were so close. You can't... you can't be happy without him. He's... _scary_ now. I know. And I'm _so sick_ of scary. But... you're terrified, James, and who else are you going to fall back on. He wants to catch you. I know he wants to catch you, and he wants to catch Logan too, but you're not letting him."

"I can catch Logan on my own," James said bitingly.

"Yeah, well who's gonna be there when you fall with him in your arms?" Carlos snapped, his voice rising despite his previous patient tone. "I can only do so much, and frankly? I don't want to help you right now if you're so intent on doing it without Kendall. You're unraveling just as much as the rest of us are, and you can't keep pretending like you're oh-so-strong to prove a point! Especially a point that you can't prove!" Carlos breathed, composing himself and righting up on his bed. "You think things aren't going to be alright? You think it's just that bad? That's only because you refuse to see what can go right! You think I can only see the good in everyone? Well, you can't see the good in _anyone!"_

James opened his mouth to say something, his face looking more open than it had a few minutes ago, but Carlos was already out the door.

**Oh gosh, this took forever. BUT I HAD FUN! So Merry Christmas! (Sorry, just watched Matt Smith's Christmas episode from Doctor Who... let's just say I'm in the mood...)**

**BTW, if Carlos seems smarter to you, then that's because lemurs are smart, and not because I'm crap at writing angry!Carlos. *whistles innocently***


	24. Making Friends

**Ahhh. It has been so long… Thank you for being patient and letting me know you were still interested all this time! NOW LEGGO!**

James was having himself a serious think. On a general basis, James absolutely hated thinking. Lately, thinking tended to do nothing but get him more worked up than he already was, which was quite a feat. Also, his thoughts didn't really help him figure anything out. They just ended up streaming into long ramblings of hate.

And James was tired of hate. He was also tired of being scared. He was aware that he was acting like a jerk lately, but… gah. How was he supposed to _not_? Every time he looked at someone or talked to someone he just… froze up. It was like his brain refused to work, he was so terrified. But James didn't know how to deal with scared anymore…

So he just threw it back in their faces. He got mad, and angry, and aggressive. And he didn't care who he had to mow over, so long as he was safe. Cause James was his own main priority right now, so he did what was right for him.

Now, James _wasn't_ scared of Logan. He didn't know if it was because he was so tiny, or because he was injured, or if it was because he was worse of than him, but regardless, he wasn't worried around him. But for some reason, Logan wasn't as freaked out as he should be. He needed to be terrified like James was. However, since he wasn't, James would be scared for him.

And scared meant angry.

So that left James sitting up on the roof, lacing his tail back and forth between his fingers, going from thoughts to terror to anger. It didn't make sense. James was tired of this crazy, exhausting line of thinking. He was sick of looking up at the clouds and seeing them twist into demons versus flowers, or pixies, or whatever normal things regular people saw, James didn't know, he had never looked up at the clouds! That was for people without television!

The sound of a door creaking open sent James twelve feet in the air. He whirled around to see Kendall poking his head out awkwardly from behind the door to the roof. He looked terrified, bangs hanging in his eyes and reminding James how bad he could use a haircut. "Oh, sorry, I didn't know you were up here, I'll just… leave. Yeah, I'll leave…" James shook himself out of his initial shock of seeing Kendall.

"No!" he shouted, and Kendall jumped a bit. James took a deep breath. "No, just… come sit with me," he told him. The look Kendall gave him was enough to make him want to throw up on his shoes. Gah, for how long had he been looking at him like that? "I swear… it's okay…" James told him, feeling terrible.

Kendall arched an eyebrow, a certain disarming nervousness about him. Kendall sat down and looked at him expectantly. To be honest, James wasn't exactly sure why he called Kendall over. Actually, his face sort of made him furious. But, at the same time, he didn't want him to leave. In fact, he kind of wanted to fall into Kendall's arms and hug him forever. What was that all about?

"Sooooo…" he drawled, feeling awkward and uncomfortable, which wasn't familiar. Times with Kendall were supposed to be simple… easy… But now it wasn't. And for some reason, James wasn't happy about it. And he also wasn't happy that he wasn't happy about it! Kendall was terrible, and mean, and… a cannibal! They weren't supposed to be friends anymore. "Can we… can we just… can we stop this? Can we be friends?" James asked. WHAT THE HECK? THAT'S NOT WHAT HE WANTED TO DO!

"Uummm… what?" Kendall asked, looking more than a little disturbed. James was kind of freaking him out. How could this kid be so bipolar? He was scratching his throat out practically yesterday, and now he was asking for them to be friends again? Is that what was happening?

James bit his lip, "Do you think we could just, like, be friends? You know, like… again?" Kendall looked at James. He looked at James _hard_. And then something snapped in his mind. Cause you know what? He wasn't gonna let people walk all over him any more.

"That's it?" he asked, letting himself get angry, get furious. James's eyes widened.

"Well, um, I don't know… yeah?" he stammered, and Kendall wanted to throw him off the building.

"No, you know what? No. That's not it," he fumed. "You can't just ask to be '_friends_', James. Or, what, did the complete and utter _hell_ you've been putting me through recently just slip your mind?" James's jaw dropped.

"Kendall, I'm sorry, I-"

"Yeah, you know what? You _are_ sorry. You are really, _really_ sorry because you can't let things just be about you, James. You have to make sure it affects everyone," he spat, "You had to talk Carlos and Logan away from me, like it wasn't enough for you to avoid me on your own. That's not cool, James. I'm going through crap, and you know what? I needed friends and they weren't there! Because of you. So you want friends? You owe me a heck of a better makeup speech than that," he yelled, eyes flashing and nostrils flaring. James sunk back a little. Frankly, this Kendall was scary, but, strangely, he didn't feel mad.

"Kendall, I'm _really _sorry," James told him, feeling more than a bit sick to his stomach. "I was just _scared_, I-"

"I was scared, too, James," Kendall said a bit desperately. "I was scared, and my friends weren't there!" Kendall's green eyes looked shaken and terrified. James didn't like seeing that look in them. He didn't like it at all.

"… My friends aren't exactly with me anymore either…" James said quietly. Kendall crossed his arms.

"So when it's you, it's a problem, and when it's me, it's whatever?" he asked, admittedly sounding like one of those women middle-aged men spent their time complaining about… Yeeesh. Female Kendall. Not a pleasing mental image. Ewie, ewie, ewie…

"No, Kendall, it's not that, it's just… I don't know. We're supposed to be bestest buddies, and we're not, and I don't like it, and… I don't know. I'm sorry," he said and winced. "Yeah, I'm not to good at this." Kendall stared him down for a minute, head cocked to the side and tail standing out stiff. Slowly, impossibly slowly, Kendall let a smile creep up on his face, and overwhelming feeling of relief coming with it.

"Friends-ies?" Kendall asked, holding his arms open wide, and looking more human to James than he had in a while. James accepted his hug and nodded.

"Friendsies."

Say what you want about Kendall's anger management problems, but the kid was the most forgiving person anyone had ever met.

**Laaa! Done. Now some more awkward moments, and an inner battle if I wanna make a sequel…**


	25. Get A Clue

**I freaking love Writing… It's so lovely for procrastination. Normally, don't get me wrong, I'm totally against procrastinating. I love getting things done and out of the way… However. I have a paper to have prepped for peer edit tomorrow, and I can't even tell you how bad I don't want to do it. Like… It's sad. It's one of those ones that doesn't actually require any effort, as I have all the sources I need, I just have to WRITE it, and I just don't WANT TO! SO late night for sure… And I couldn't care LESS. **

**Anyway. Last chapter. Let's get this done…**

It was weird seeing James and Kendall sitting next to each other at the table and laughing. Everyone in 2J had all but forgotten the normalcy of their friendship, and watching the two smile while the other was in the room made it sort of feel like they'd phased back through time. However, the various scars littering the boys' bodies and the medicine they were supposed to take made reality always hit hard without fail. Oh, and the animal parts. Those did a good job refreshing their memories as well.

It was also weird to be home still. Every time they looked in the mirror or used an appendage that they hadn't had before, it was basically a transporter to that freaking little white room. Luckily, none of them were alone in that compressing feeling that always came with the thought of those _cages_. What an awful word…

Logan, personally, felt really uncomfortable being home. Just looking at Kendall made his insides feel like they were turning inside out, and he _hated it_. It was also weird for him to try to reach out for something, and then remember how his one arm was practically immobile due to how tightly wrapped it was. Luckily, his Carlos saw how he was struggling and was always there to grab him whatever he needed, even if it happened to occasionally be with his tail.

Fortunately for all four boys, the tension that had previously filled the apartment had nearly settled out. Things between James and Carlos were oddly slightly awkward, but the pretty boy had somehow seemed to prove something to the Latino by making up with Kendall. Whatever. Logan hadn't followed that, and Kendall seemed just as confused, but neither was going to look that gift horse in the mouth.

Currently, Logan was curled up with Carlos on the couch, tickling each other's noses with their respective tails in an attempt to see who could go the longest without sneezing. Yeah… the cable had been out for about six hours now? They were running out of things to do by a _lot_. One more game of twister, and Logan was pretty sure he'd shoot himself in the freaking face.

Kendall and James were playing Clue, and naturally the game was going terribly with only two people, Logan and Carlos having clocked out about a half hour ago. Logan had kept winning, and Carlos had kept loosing… Suddenly, James cleared his throat.

"So are we all cool?" he asked, and there was a certain nervousness to his voice that put all of the boys off a bit. Kendall's eyes seemed to magically become glued to the floor, and Carlos pulled his tail away from Logan's face, threading it between his fingers and Logan mimicking him. The pale boy's nose twitched, his ears doing the same.

"I don't think I have any qualms with anything," he said, locking eyes with Kendall for a moment, watching the fear run across the blonde's face. He put on a reassuring smile, despite the fear that would eventually dissolve eternally welling in the pit of his stomach. "I mean, aside from how itchy some of these scabs are…" he said as brightly as he could in the situation, but then he let his face fall, "And how bad the elevator freaks me out…" His friends all hummed in agreement. Small spaces were freaky. Carlos did his weird little chatter of a laugh.

"I can't even go down my Swirly," he said with a smile, but his eyes looked sad. Logan couldn't help but notice his possessive phrasing… He had _thought_ the slide had smelled distinctly like the shorter boy… James frowned.

"Okay, but that's not what I meant, I mean, like…" James bit his lip, deep in thought as he instinctively traced his stripes through his shirt. Kind of a weird habit, but none of them could exactly judge. "Carlos," he said eventually, snapping out of his trance, "I'm sorry for being a moron," he said, and the lemur's eyes widened, oddly shifting to the weird orangey color that they morphed to in the dark for a moment. A low sound resonated in his throat.

"It's cool," he said slowly, and James clenched his jaw in either embarrassment or acceptance and nodded. A really, really uncomfortable silence fell over the apartment until Kendall smacked his cards face down on the table.

"Professor Plumb with the rope in the foyer!" he declared a bit louder than necessary, his eyes ablaze with certainty. James slipped the answer cards out of the manila, confidential folder in the center of the board and scowled. He didn't even need to tell Kendall he was right before the blonde was dancing around the room, smile wide on his face. "I am such a WINNER!" he exclaimed, and started chasing his tail, energetic from James's loss.

Logan slipped his tail quickly under Carlos's nose, making a face as the other boy sneezed all over it. Gross… even through the fur it felt all wet… "Nasty bro…"

"That's what you _get_," Carlos retorted, going all feather-duster with his own tail on Logan's head and making him sneeze just the same, Carlos's face reflecting his own. Okay, so yeah… Maybe things were a little off, but somehow? Somehow Logan knew it would be okay… It was funny how things just magically felt better now that they were all friends again. It was corney, but _way_ true… It seemed kind of hokey, but Logan had a feeling they could get through this…

James let out a weird whiney –even on his part- as Carlos clung onto his head like the monkey he was and rode him about the living room, Kendall oddly still chasing his tail, as Logan lay curled up in a ball on the couch.

… Even if they still had to deal with all this wild behavior….

**Woot. **

**Now on the topic of a sequel. It would be, like, 10 chapters most, somewhat Kendall centered, but not in NEAR the way you're thinking, so don't get your little heads in a tizzy, and it would be a little bit before I started it, as I have some things to get out of the way. Thoughts?**


End file.
